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AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF 

GEORGE DEWEY 

ADMIRAL OF THE NAVY 






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AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF 
GEORGE DEWEY 

ADMIRAL OF THE NAVY 



ILLUSTRATED 



NEW YORK 

CHARLES SCRIBNER'S SONS 

1916 



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.Ustlis^ 



Copyright, 1913, by 
CHARLES SCRIBNER'S SONS 



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PREFACE 

It was my fortune to be in command on May i, 
1898, of an American squadron in the first important 
naval action against a foreign foe since the War of 
1812. The morning that we steamed into Manila 
Bay marked an epoch in the history of our navy and 
in that of our country in its relations with other great 
nations. A battle in a harbor whose name was un- 
known to our average citizen made us a world-power, 
with a resultant impetus to the national imagination 
and a new entail of national responsibilities. My 
orders were to capture or destroy the enemy's force, 
and to conduct offensive operations in the Philippine 
Islands. These orders I endeavored to obey with all 
possible expedition, in keeping with the traditions of 
our navy. 

After the battle I received so many requests 
from publishers and editors for contributions in any 
form under my name that I might well have con- 
cluded that the victory which had come as the climax 
of my naval career was about to embark me on a 
literary career, toward which I naturally had the dis- 
inclination of a man of action. Urgings from many 
quarters to write my reminiscences have continued 



vi PREFACE 

to the present time. My answer invariably has been 
that my record up to the time of the battle had not 
in itself sufficient personal significance to warrant an 
autobiography; for the life of every naval officer 
doing his duty as it comes to him, under the author- 
ity of the President and of Congress, merges into 
the life of the whole navy as a unit of service in 
preparedness for national defence in a crisis. 

In keeping with the decision made when I was 
at Manila, my official reports have been thus far my 
only public account of the battle. However, after 
my return to Washington, for the sake of historical 
accuracy I wrote, with the assistance of my aide, 
the late Commander Nathan Sargent, U. S. N., a 
complete account of my command of the Asiatic 
Squadron from the time I hoisted my commodore's 
pennant until my return home in 1899. My plan 
was not to have this published until after my death. 
But now, fifteen years after the battle, I am yield- 
ing to the arguments of my friends, not only to 
have it published, but also to write my recollections 
of my career before Manila Bay brought me into 
prominent public notice. 

It is fifty-nine years since I became an acting 
midshipman. Thanks to the creation of the grade 
of admiral of the navy by Congress in 1899, I was 
not retired at the usual retiring age, but kept on the 
active list for life. My memory stretches from an 
apprenticeship under the veterans of the War of 



PREFACE vii 

1812, those heroes of the old saihng-frigates and 
ships of the hne; from the earher days of the steam- 
frigates through the Civil War; from the period of 
inertia in the 'seventies, when our obsolete ships were 
the byword of the navies of the world, to the build- 
ing of the ships of our new navy, which I was to give 
its first baptism of fire; and, finally, to my service 
as head of the general board of the navy since the 
Spanish War. 

I have been through many administrations and 
many political changes, and have known many famous 
men both at home and abroad. When I entered 
the Naval Academy, in 1854, Commodore Perry was 
just opening Japan to civilization; it was only six 
years since California had become United States ter- 
ritory; while there was as yet no transcontinental 
railroad. At seventy-five I am writing in the hope 
of giving some pleasure to my countrymen, from 
whom I have received such exceptional honors, and 
in the hope that my narrative may be of some value 
and inspiration to the young men of the navy of 
to-day, who are serving with the same purpose that 
animated the men of Decatur's, Macdonough's, and 
Farragut's day, and later, the men of our squadrons 
which fought at Manila and Santiago. 

I may add that in everything that refers to my 
command of the Asiatic Squadron in 1898-9 the 
greatest pains have been taken to insure the correct- 
ness of every detail; but in the reminiscences of a 



VUl 



PREFACE 



more remote period I must often depend upon my 
recollection of incidents which were not recorded at 
the time that they came under my observation. I 
narrate them as I remember them. In this part 
particularly, as well as for his literary advice and 
assistance in the whole work, it is a pleasure to ac- 
knowledge my indebtedness to Mr. Frederick Palmer, 
a friend of Manila days. 




-.-^^-^^^^^ 




May 12, 1913. 



CONTENTS 

CHAPTER PAGE 

I. Early Years 3 

II. At Annapolis 10 

III. The Midshipman Cruise 23 

IV. Beginning of the Civil War .... 38 
V. The Battle of New Orleans .... 60 

VI. In New Orleans 'j'j 

VII. The Battle of Port Hudson .... 85 

VIII. Prize Commissioner 106 

IX. On the James River 114 

X. The Battle of Fort Fisher .... 122 

XL Service After the War 138 

XII. Building the New Navy 150 

XIII. In Command of the Asiatic Squadron 167 

XIV. Final Preparations for War .... 186 
XV. The Battle of Manila Bay .... 197 

XVI. After the Battle 234 

XVII. A Period of Anxiety 252 



[ CONTENTS 

CHAPTER PAGE 

XVIII. The Taking of Manila 268 

XIX. Since Manila 283 

Appendices 293 

Index 327 



ILLUSTRATIONS 

Admiral George Dewey Frontispiece 

FACING PAGE 

Doctor Julius Yemens Dewey 4 

The birthplace of Admiral Dewey at Montpelier, Vermont 6 

The school-house at Montpelier 6 

The U. S. steam frigate Wabash 24 

Lieutenant-Commander Dewey at the age of twenty-nine 36 

The U. S. steam frigate Mississippi 48 

Captain Melancthon Smith, commander of the Mississippi 50 

Admiral David G. Farragut 56 

Battle of New Orleans, April 24, 1862 62 

"I remember seeing their bright gleaming ends when I 
looked down from the hurricane deck in my first 

glimpse of the hole in our side" 66 

Commodore Thatcher 116 

Captain Emmons 116 

Rear- Admiral Dahlgren 116 

The U. S. S. Agawam 118 

The U. S. steam frigate Colorado 134 

Captain Dewey at the age of forty-six 156 

Captain Dewey on the bridge of the Pensacola .... 158 

The U. S. battleship Texas 164 

The U. S. cruiser Olympia 170 

Admiral Dewey and his dog, "Bob," on the deck of the 

Olympia 172 

zi 



xii ILLUSTRATIONS 



FACING PACE 



Admiral Dewey and the officers of the Olympia .... 174 

The U. S. cruiser Boston 180 

The Pasig River, Manila 200 

Commodore Dewey's diary — the start for Manila Bay . . 206 

The battle of Manila Bay 216 

Commodore Dewey's diary — the battle of Manila Bay . 224 

Captain Charles V. Gridley, captain of the Olympia . . 246 

Commander B. P. Lamberton, Admiral Dewey's chief of 

staff 246 

The U. S. monitor Monterey 272 

Philippine commission, 1899 284 

Admiral Dewey receiving Rear-Admiral Sampson on 

board the Olympia, at New York 286 

The temporary triumphal arch erected in New York in 
Admiral Dewey's honor upon his arrival from the 
Philippines 288 

President McKinley and Admiral Dewey reviewing the 
parade after the presentation of the sword given by 
Congress 290 

The Dewey medal 292 

MAP 

Track of Commodore Dewey's squadron during the bat- 
tle of Manilla Bay 198 



AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF 

GEORGE DEWEY 

ADMIRAL OF THE NAVY 



CHAPTER I 
EARLY YEARS 

During my long stay in the heat of Manila Bay 
after the battle, certain angles of view of the irreg- 
ular landscape of Luzon from the deck of the flag- 
ship Olympia often recalled the Green Mountains of 
my boyhood days. Indeed, I never look across a 
stretch of rolling country without a feeling of home- 
sickness for Vermont. My ancestors were reared 
among the New England hills. They were of the 
old Pilgrim stock whose character has so eminently 
impressed itself on that of the nation. 

A desire for religious freedom brought the French 
Huguenot family of Douai to Kent, in England, in 
the latter half of the sixteenth century. There the 
name became Duee. In a later time a desire for re- 
ligious freedom sent one Thomas Duee, the founder 
of the American family, from Sandwich, in Kent, to 
Massachusetts, where the name was changed to 
Dewey. He settled at Dorchester in 1634, and 
mention of him appears in the old town records as 
follows : 

It is granted that Thomas Duee shall have 2 acres of mow- 
ing ground, neere the Fresh Marsh, which he hath formerly 
mowen, in satisfaction for an acre of ground, which he left in 
common at his house. 



4 GEORGE DEWEY 

Later he became one of the founders of Windsor, 
Connecticut. He had five children. My branch is 
that of Josiah, the second son, who had the rank of 
sergeant in King Phihp*s War. 

My great-grandfather, WilUam Dewey, was one of 
the volunteers at the battle of Lexington, and his 
brother, Simeon Dewey, was with Ethan Allen at 
the taking of Fort Ticonderoga by the Green Moun- 
tain Boys. My grandfather, Simeon Dewey, born in 
1770, formed a connecting link for me with the Rev- 
olution, of which he had many youthful memories. 
He was particularly fond of telling how, as a boy of 
nine, he had taken a team of oxen to the woods, 
felled a tree, drawn the log to the house, and cut it 
up into firewood without any assistance. He was a 
farmer in the days when much of the soil of Ver- 
mont was still virgin, before competition from the 
opening up of the prairie land of the West had led 
to the abandonment of so many New England farms. 
I recollect him as the embodiment of the old Puritan 
qualities, with his lip and cheeks shaven and a beard 
about his chin and throat, in the fashion of his time. 
On my first cruise in the Mediterranean I sent him 
an olive-wood walking-stick from the Holy Land, 
which he used until the day of his death, in 1863, 
when I was a lieutenant in Farragut's command in 
the Gulf. 

My father. Doctor Julius Yemans Dewey, after 
his graduation from the medical department of the 




DOCTOR JULIUS YEMENS DEWEY 



EARLY YEARS 5 

University of Vermont, settled for practice in Mont- 
pelier, where, in a comfortable frame house of the 
type which you may see in any New England town, 
I was born, December 26, 1837, the youngest of 
three brothers. My mother I hardly remember, as 
she died when I was only five. To my father's in- 
fluence in my early training I owe, primarily, all 
that I have accomplished in the world. From him 
I inherited a vigorous constitution and an active 
temperament. He was a good deal more than a suc- 
cessful practising physician. He was one of those 
natural leaders to whom men turn for unbiassed ad- 
vice. His ideas of right and wrong were very fixed, 
in keeping with his deep religious scruples. 

My early life was that of the boys of the neigh- 
borhood of a quiet street in an American town, 
which, to my mind, is about as healthy a life as a 
growing boy can lead. I went early to the district 
school, and they say the nature of my disposition 
led me into a great many adventures. Certainly I 
was full of animal spirits, and I liked things to hap- 
pen wherever I was. Probably I had a gift for stir- 
ring up the other boys to help me in my enterprises. 
A life of Hannibal which I had received as a present 
fired my imagination. In winter it was easy to 
make-believe that in storming a neighboring hill I 
was making the passage of the Alps. If there were 
no other soldiers to follow me, I might draft my 
sister Mary, who was two years my junior. 



6 GEORGE DEWEY 

My memory has kept no account of the number 
of boyish battles that I was in. The first day that 
the legislature sat was always a great occasion in 
the State capital, and boys used to come in from 
near-by towns for the gingerbread and sweet cider 
festivals, counterparts of the pea-nut and lemonade 
festivals of to-day, while their elders were shopping, 
trading horses, and talking politics. For the phalanx 
of our street it was an occasion for proving whether 
or not the outsiders were more vahant than we. 

One of my favorite deeds of bravado was de- 
scending the old State-house steps blindfolded, with 
the on-lookers wondering whether I would slip on 
the way and take the rest of the flight head first, 
I was a good swimmer and had plenty of opportunity 
for practice in the waters of the Onion River, since 
called the Winooski, which was near our house. 
Perhaps some boy may have since excelled me in 
the length of time that he could hold his head under 
water, but my record was unbeaten in my day. It 
gave me the authority of leadership in all water 
functions. 

On one occasion, when the river was swollen to a 
flood, I thought that it would be a grand exploit to 
drive a horse and wagon across the current. The 
wagon was submerged. I crawled over the dash- 
board onto the horse's back, and he brought me 
drenched to the shore. I was less worried over 
what I had escaped than over the reckoning that 




THE BIRTHPLACE OF ADMIRAL DEWEY AT MONTPELIER, 

VERMONT 




THE SCHOOL-HOUSE AT MONTPELIER 



EARLY YEARS 7 

was to come with a father whose discipline was so 
necessary to a nature that was incHned to rebel 
against sedate surroundings. When he returned 
from a professional call he found me in bed in my 
room, shivering very determinedly. 

"You ought to be glad that I am alive!" I told 
him reproachfully. He seemed to take the same 
view, for I was not punished, though he had lost 
his wagon. 

As I grew older the masters of our district school 
had such a difficult time in keeping order that they 
were frequently changed. Some of the boys of my 
age regarded it as their business to test each new 
appointee. Such rebellious manifestations were not 
uncommon in district schools of that time and cer- 
tainly did not contribute to scholarship. My father 
doubtless saw that I was in need of discipline, and 
he sent me, at the age of fourteen, to the old Mili- 
tary Academy at Norwich, Vermont. It had been 
founded by the first superintendent of West Point, 
Captain Alden Partridge. At one time its reputa- 
tion had been so high that it was considered supe- 
rior to West Point, and many boys from the South, 
where the military spirit was more common in those 
days than in the North, had been among its pupils. 
We lived in dormitories and had regular military drill. 
As an institution in keeping with its original pur- 
pose, Norwich had greatly deteriorated. I am glad 
to say it has now recovered its former excellence. 



8 GEORGE DEWEY 

Not long ago in Woodstock, Vermont, where I 
spend my summers, the judge of the district court 
there invited me to sit on the bench with him and 
see how the cases were conducted. I answered him 
that I already had a pretty good idea of court pro- 
ceedings in Woodstock from personal experience, for 
the docket of the old court-house in Woodstock re- 
cords the following in expression of the view that 
might be taken of a school-boy's pranks in a staid 
academy town in the early fifties: 

WINDSOR COUNTY COURT 
Dec. Term, 1854. 

The State Converse & Bassett 

vs. For Comstalk. 

Lloyd E. Bowers, 
Gordon S. Hubbard, 
Daniel Comstalk, 
George Dewey and 
Martin V. B. Wasson. 

As will be seen, Comstalk was the only one of 
us who had a lawyer. The five culprits had stood 
outside the window of a room where hymns were 
being sung and broken up the meeting by a rival 
concert of our own, made up mostly of negro mel- 
odies. Life in that school provided us with little 
relaxation. The very insistence of the authorities 
on continual study in a solemn manner was bound 
to awaken the spirit of mischief. Our invention of 
a means of amusement to make up for the absence 



EARLY YEARS 9 

of any in the curriculum brought our arrest and an 
order to appear before the court at Woodstock. 

My allowance being pretty small, I worried ter- 
ribly over how I was going to pay my hotel and 
travelling expenses; and also as to what my father, 
with his strict ideas, would say about it all. How- 
ever, I summoned the courage and wrote him the 
truth. Of course, he sent me the money, but the 
letter accompanying the remittance was rather tart. 
He declared that in the start of my educational 
career away from home I had accomplished more 
than he had expected. Indeed, I had made such 
progress that he was convinced that I needed no 
further education, and my evident knowledge of the 
ways of the world should make me equal to under- 
taking the battle of life at once. 



CHAPTER II 
AT ANNAPOLIS 

At the time that I left Norwich, 1854, West 
Point had a great name as a discipUnary institution. 
There boys had to obey. AnnapoHs was not then 
so well known as West Point, being only nine years 
old. We owe the efficiency of the personnel of our 
navy to Annapolis ; and we owe Annapolis to George 
Bancroft, a man of singular versatility of talent and 
singular sturdiness and decisiveness of character. He 
not only wrote the standard history of the United 
States which bears his name, but he was also min- 
ister to Berlin and secretary of the navy. 

When he saw that, with the development of 
naval science, a school was as necessary for train- 
ing officers for the navy as one for training officers 
for the army, his proposition met with the imme- 
diate opposition of the veteran officers of the service. 
Their disparagement was sufficient to prevent Con- 
gress from appropriating money to give the new in- 
stitution a start. But this did not discourage Mr. 
Bancroft. He went right ahead with what resources 
he could command. At Annapolis there was old 
Fort Severn, which had been deserted. In want of 
funds for buildings, he secured the use of the build- 



AT ANNAPOLIS ii 

Ings which had been occupied by the force that 
formerly manned the fort. The barracks which 
had housed privates of artillery became the dormi- 
tories of the future officers of the navy. Henry H. 
Lockwood, a former army officer and a graduate of 
West Point, was appointed professor of mathematics 
and became the chief instructor. Most of the other 
instructors were civilians. Their assistants were 
young officers of the navy. 

While the majority of the old officers poked fun 
at the idea, one of the progressives, Franklin Bu- 
chanan, a Marylander, was Bancroft's energetic aid 
in the organization of the academy. Buchanan re- 
signed from the navy at the outbreak of the Civil 
War; but when he found that his own State, Mary- 
land, had not seceded, he tried to withdraw his resig- 
nation. This being refused, he joined the enemy. 
He commanded the Merrimac in her raid in Hamp- 
ton Roads, at which time he was wounded. This 
made him the hero of the Confederate navy. He 
was in command at Mobile Bay against Farragut. 
It is one of the anomalies of history that one who 
had such strict loyalty to State's as opposed to 
national rights should have been the most conspicu- 
ous organizer of that school whose graduates, in the 
Spanish War, struck the blows which did so much 
to unite the North and the South in a new feeling of 
national unity before the world. 

Too frequently credit for the Naval Academy 



12 GEORGE DEWEY 

has been given to Buchanan rather than to Ban- 
croft. It is related that Bancroft used to get much 
out of patience with the old officers. In those days 
the men on the captain's list received their assign- 
ments to ships in rotation, without regard to their 
fitness. A great many of the captains were not only 
old, but their habits, as the legacy of the hard-living 
days of the War of 1812, scarcely promoted efficiency 
in their declining years. Indeed, it was still the cus- 
tom to serve out two rations of grog every day to 
the sailors, while officers of the broadside school did 
not limit themselves to any stated number. One of 
the veterans was so conspicuously unfit that Ban- 
croft passed him by when it came his turn to have a 
ship. He wrote to the secretary in great indigna- 
tion, wanting to know what he had done that he 
should have been overlooked in that fashion after a 
long career in his country's service. Bancroft wrote 
back, "Nothing!" which was exactly what that cap- 
tain had been doing for a good many years. 

Competitive examinations were not yet the rule 
in my time in choosing candidates for either West 
Point or Annapolis. Appointments were due en- 
tirely to the political favor of representatives in 
Congress. There was no vacancy for West Point 
from Vermont. Otherwise, I might have gone into 
Manila Bay on an army transport instead of on the 
Olympia. 

But it happened that there was a vacancy at 



I 



AT ANNAPOLIS 13 

Annapolis. A boy by the name of George Spaul- 
ding, of Montpelier, received the appointment at 
first, but decided that he would not take it. My fa- 
ther, through his influence with Senator Foote, had 
me made Spaulding's successor. Spaulding became 
a distinguished clergyman. Perhaps he was better 
suited for that than to be a sailor. Certainly I 
was better suited to be a sailor than a clergyman. 
I recollect that he preached a sermon in honor of 
the victory of Manila Bay at his church in Syracuse. 

My father accompanied me to Annapolis, where 
I was to try the entrance examination. That was 
quite a journey into the world for a Vermont young- 
ster of ante-bellum days. We went by rail to New 
York, where we stopped at the Irving House, which 
was kept by a Vermonter and was situated on Broad- 
way, opposite A. T. Stewart's great store, which was 
then regarded as a kind of eighth wonder of the world 
by all women shoppers. 

Father took me to the theatre, where Burton, a 
famous comedian of the period, was playing. I had 
never seen a real stage comedian before, and I laughed 
so hard that I fairly lost control of myself, and my 
father made me leave the theatre. 

The next day we started for Annapolis, which 
was then twelve hours' journey from New York. 
First we took a steamer to Perth Amboy. From 
there we went by train to Philadelphia. Horses 
drew the car in which we went through the streets of 



14 GEORGE DEWEY 

Philadelphia, and we left this car at Havre de Grace. 
I recall that we had luncheon on the steam ferry 
crossing the Susquehanna. 

We went through Baltimore in the same way that 
we had through Philadelphia, in a railroad car drawn 
by horses at a trot, with a brakeman blowing a horn 
for people and vehicles to get out of the way of the 
through express. 

The entrance examinations to the Naval Academy 
were very simple in those days, consisting chiefly of 
reading, writing, and arithmetic. I had the good 
fortune to pass. Before he started home my father 
said to me: 

"George, I've done all I can for you. The rest 
you must do for yourself." 

This advice I have always tried to keep in mind. 

Although the entrance examinations were easy, 
the process of elimination was even more rigorous 
through that stiff four years' course than at present. 
Sixty of us entered the academy in '54, and only 
fifteen of us were graduated in '58. By the end of 
the first year twenty-three. had been plucked. I 
was number thirty-three out of the remaining thirty- 
five. That old faculty for making things happen 
had given me one hundred and thirteen demerit 
marks. Two hundred meant dismissal. 

I was very poor in history and geography, but 
excellent in mathematics, which had pulled me 
through. In the second year, when nine more had 



AT ANNAPOLIS 15 

been dropped, I was ninth among the survivors. 
My conduct marks had improved, and I was even 
better now in French and Spanish than in mathe- 
matics, but still low in history. On leaving the acad- 
emy I was fifth among the fifteen who remained out 
of the original sixty. As for geography, I was to 
learn something of that in the harbors of the world. 
My weakness in history I overcame later in life, 
when I grew fond of reading. As for tactics and gun- 
nery, in which I had also been low, I had practice in 
the Civil War which was far more valuable than any 
theory. Moreover, the tactics and gunnery which 
I had been taught at the academy were soon to be- 
come quite antiquated as more progressive officers al- 
ready understood. I flatter myself that this accounted 
partially for my lack of interest in this branch. 

The academy at that time had not yet settled in 
its traditions, and naval science was in a transition 
period from sails to steam. All the graduates of the 
academy were as yet juniors and not of any consid- 
erable influence in the service. No retirement pro- 
vision existed. The old captains, many of whom 
had been in the War of 181 2, were brought up in 
wooden frigates and ships of the line. Their ideas 
were very fixed. They had little charity for the 
innovations suggested by their juniors. To them a 
naval ofUcer must ever remain primarily a sailor. 
But from them through the War of 181 2 the navy 
had a proud inheritance. The history of that war 



i6 GEORGE DEWEY 

on land, with its untrained volunteer troops, In which 
our Capitol was burned and our effort at the inva- 
sion of Canada proved a fiasco, hardly makes pleas- 
ant reading for any American who has the right kind 
of patriotism, which never closes its eyes to facts. 

But the ships of our little navy, keeping to the 
traditions of our fast clippers and of Decatur at Trip- 
oli, by outrunning the enemy in overwhelmingly 
superior numbers, closing in on him when terms were 
equal, gave an account of themselves that thrilled 
the nation. They fought the veterans of Trafalgar 
according to their own methods. These were ter- 
rible, bloody encounters at close quarters. That of 
the Constitution and the Guerriere was over in an 
hour; that of the United States and the Macedonian 
in an hour and a half; and that of the Hornet and 
Peacock in fourteen minutes. The spirit of the les- 
son which the British learned in the Napoleonic wars, 
they met in us. It meant boarding with the cutlass 
when the ships were alongside, after they had been 
raked fore and aft with gun fire. Tactics and gun- 
nery were very simple then compared to the present, 
when action may begin at a distance of six or seven 
miles. 

The boys who came to Annapolis from all parts 
of a big expanse of a country not yet nationalized 
by the broad community of thought and intelligence 
of to-day had to be welded by the spirit of corps 
into a common life and purpose. When you enter 



AT ANNAPOLIS 17 

the academy you cease to be a Vermonter or a Geor- 
gian or a Californian. You are In the navy; your 
future, with its sea-service and its frequent changes 
of assignment, makes you first a man of the country's 
service and only secondly a man of the world. Your 
associations all your life are with the men of your 
first comradeship of study and discipline. My fel- 
low-midshipmen at Annapolis were the officers who, 
rising grade by grade, held the important commands 
of squadrons and ships afloat, and were the com- 
mandants of navy-yards and the heads of bureaus 
ashore during the Spanish War. 

In the fifties we were still almost exclusively an 
agricultural nation. Our population was hardly a 
third of what it is at present. Personal wealth and 
luxury were limited to a few of the older cities. The 
midshipman of to-day, with his fine quarters, his 
shower-bath, his superior and varied diet, his foot- 
ball stadium, his special trains to the annual army 
and navy games, expresses the change that has come 
over the life of the nation as a whole. We now prac- 
tise as well as preach the precept that all work and 
no play makes Jack a dull boy. 

In my day at Annapolis we had no system of 
athletics except our regular military drill. There 
was no adequate gymnastic apparatus. The rule 
was one endless grind of acquiring knowledge. Our 
only amusement within the walls of the academy was 
the "stag hop" on Saturdays, held in the basement 



i8 GEORGE DEWEY 

of the old recitation hall. We were all vigorous boys 
or we could not have passed the physical entrance 
examination; and we were being trained for a career 
that required dash and physical spirits. Under such 
restraint there were bound to be outbreaks and such 
infractions of discipline as not only would not be tol- 
erated but would not occur to-day. Every mid- 
shipman had his nickname, of course, as every one 
has had from the inception of the academy and still 
has, and mine was "Shang" Dewey. I confess that 
I do not know how it originated. Hazing was rife. 
It was accepted as a part of the curriculum in whip- 
ping raw youths, whose egoism may have been over- 
developed by fond parents, into the habit of com- 
radeship and spirit of corps. The excuse for it in 
its rigor of my time no longer exists under the pres- 
ent organization, however. I fear, too, that the fac- 
ulty did not always receive the respect that they 
should have received. An assistant professor called 
"Bull Pup" was at one time captured and impris- 
oned in a glass wall-case in the chemical laboratory 
as an expression of midshipman disapproval. 

Such actions, if inexcusable, had the palliation of 
a course which was without athletics or amusement 
and of the youth of the academy, which had not yet 
found itself as an institution. However, I believe 
that rowdyism was then far more common in civilian 
colleges than it is to-day; and if, in later times as 
instructors, the men of my day would not permit 



AT ANNAPOLIS 19 

such infractions, it was proof of our realization of 
their utter subversion of mihtary principles, while in 
recollection of our own close confinement we did pro- 
vide for athletics and other forms of relaxation which 
left no excuse for ebullitions of an insubordinate 
nature. 

Fistic arbitration of grievances between two mid- 
shipmen, I believe, still prevails under the super- 
vision of upper-class men as the court of honor, in 
spite of the close observation of the commandant. 
There were numbers of them in my time. They were 
privately acknowledged, if openly discouraged, by 
the instructors as the manly way to settle differ- 
ences. I looked after an affair of my own without 
waiting on any formality. A cadet who sat opposite 
me called me a name at mess which no man can hear 
without redress. I did not lose a second, and, spring- 
ing around the table, I went for him and beat him 
down under the table before we were separated. That 
was a pretty serious infraction of discipline at mess. 
The combatants were brought up before the super- 
intendent. Captain L. M. Goldsborough, later the 
well-known rear-admiral of the Civil War, who asked 
me why I had made the attack. I told him the name 
which my classmate had called me. He said that I 
could not have done anything else, fined me ten de- 
merits, and assured the fellow whom I had thrashed 
that he had got exactly what he deserved. That I 
thought was a very sensible decision. 



20 GEORGE DEWEY 

Captain George S. Blake, who was superintend- 
ent for the last three years that I was at Annapolis, 
married a daughter of Commodore Barron, who, it 
will be remembered, killed Decatur in a duel. Mrs. 
Blake had a warm place in the hearts of all the An- 
napolis graduates of my time. She was very kind to 
us in a day when the acting midshipmen saw little of 
home life. Thanks to Captain Goldsborough, Blake's 
predecessor, we had our barracks heated by steam 
and also the luxury of gas lamps. We lived two in 
a room and had to make our own beds and sweep 
our own rooms, but negro women who came in at 
stated intervals did the scrubbing. There were, as 
a rule, less than a hundred midshipmen all told; so 
that we came to know one another well. 

Of course, all the under-class men looked forward 
to the glorious day when they should go on furlough 
at the end of their second year, as has ever been 
the custom. We had a song that expressed the feel- 
ings, in anticipation of that long-leave absence, of 
boys who had known an unremitting grind far from 
home: 

"Come all ye gallant middies 
Who are going on furlough; 
We'll sing the song of liberty; 
We're going for to go. 

"Take your tobacco lively 
And pass the plug around; 
We'll have a jolly time to-night 
Before we're homeward bound. 



AT ANNAPOLIS 21 

"Our sweethearts waiting for us, 
With eyes brimful of tears, 
Will welcome us back home again 
From an absence of two years." 

The reference to the plug of tobacco Is to a habit 
in the United States which readers of Dickens's 
''American Notes" will recall excited the author's 
fervent comment, I always joined in the song hear- 
tily, and I also chewed tobacco. It was the habit of 
the acting midshipmen, In keeping with the universal 
male habit of the time. However, when I went to 
the Mediterranean on my midshipman cruise and 
found that the British and other foreign officers did 
not chew, I became convinced that It was a filthy, 
vulgar habit in which no officer or gentleman should 
Indulge. So I declared that I would chew no more. 
It required a good deal of fortitude to overcome 
this habit, more, I think, than to give up smoking. 
But I kept my pledge to myself, and never took 
another chew after I had made up my mind on the 
subject. 

The fifteen in my class who were finally gradu- 
ated were well grounded. The things that we knew 
we knew well. This has always been the character 
of Annapolis, which fashions a definite type of man 
for a definite object In life. The relentless examina- 
tions permit of no subterfuge of mental agility and no 
superficial familiarity with a variety of subjects to 
take the place of exact knowledge of a limited num- 



22 GEORGE DEWEY 

ber of subjects. I think I may say that no four 
years' course in any institution gives its students 
more in mind and character than the school from 
which the officers of our navy are drawn. 



CHAPTER III 
THE MIDSHIPMAN CRUISE 

On our graduation from the academy on June i8, 
1858, we passed from the rank of acting midshipmen 
to that of midshipmen, with two years' experience in 
practical cruising ahead of us before we actually got 
our commissions. We were now to have our reward 
for the four years' grind. We were to see the world. 
With three of my classmates I was assigned to the 
Wabash, a steam-frigate of over four thousand tons, 
with a powerful battery for her day and one of a 
class of six that had been built in 1855. The Merri- 
mac of this class, which fell into Southern hands in 
the Norfolk Navy Yard at the outbreak of the Civil 
War, became the famous iron-clad which the Con- 
federates called the Virginia, but which was always 
known in the North by her original name. The 
Wahash was the flag-ship of the Mediterranean Squad- 
ron, bearing the flag of Flag-Officer E. A. F. La 
Valette. At that time the highest rank in the navy 
was captain, so that the commander of a squadron 
was known as the flag-ofiicer. 

Flag-Officer La Valette, a veteran of 1812, had 
been in the battle of Lake Champlain. He was a 
white-haired, fine-appearing old ofllicer and a very 

23 



24 GEORGE DEWEY 

worthy representative to take a squadron abroad. 
On a number of occasions he had the young officers 
in to dinner. It was inspiring to us to hear his 
experiences in a war that had been fought forty-five 
years previously. 

The If abash had two horizontal engines, and her 
maximum speed under steam was nine knots, with 
an average of about five. We sailed from Hamp- 
ton Roads on July 22, 1858, arriving at Gibraltar 
on August 15. Altogether, some fourteen months 
were spent in the Mediterranean, cruising from port 
to port. We youngsters of the "steerage," as the 
junior mess is called in distinction from the senior 
or wardroom mess, had close quarters, but ours was 
the happiest period that comes to a naval officer's 
career. In every important port from Gibraltar to 
Turkey and Egypt we had glimpses of life ashore; 
and we were introduced for the first time to the ex- 
change of official calls and salutes between nations, 
which becomes routine to older officers, but to us 
had the charm of novelty. No conducted tourist ex- 
cursion can quite equal that under official auspices. 

I recall that President Cleveland once said to a 
friend of mine that he considered that the commander 
of a man-of-war on the European station had about 
as lordly a position as could fall to the lot of an 
American citizen. He is the king of a little world 
of his own, subject only to squadron orders and to 
those from Washington. 



THE MIDSHIPMAN CRUISE 25 

But the midshipman at the bottom round of the 
official ladder has one advantage over all his supe- 
riors, and that is youth. On my cruise homeward 
from Manila in 1899, when I needed rest before the 
overwhelming public reception that awaited me, I 
spent several weeks in the Mediterranean, of whose 
climate and associations I had always been very 
fond. I enjoyed myself almost as well as I did when 
I was a midshipman. 

The Wabash was a ship of which we could be 
justly proud, which means a great deal to any naval 
officer when he is in foreign waters. He does not 
like to feel that his country's flag is flying over an 
antiquated craft, which was the case throughout the 
depressing years of the seventies and eighties. Many 
visitors in every port came on board the "Yankee'* 
and marvelled at her trimness and particularly at 
her cleanliness, which has always been characteristic 
of American men-of-war. 

At this period France, after England, was far and 
away the preponderant naval power, and of course 
the next greatest influence in world politics. The 
German Empire and a United Italy were yet to be 
born. The leading ships of all the nations were in the 
Mediterranean, in view of a war impending between 
France and Italy and Austria. Besides, the situation 
In the Near East was always the ticklish one In the 
policy of foreign chancelleries, which, of late years, 
has yielded Its place In that respect to the Far East. 



26 GEORGE DEWEY 

Every navy was largely represented in the Bos- 
phorus in October, 1858, in celebration of the birth- 
day of Mohammed. This was my first introduction 
to Constantinople and the Orient. On account of the 
Crimean War, in which the French and the English 
had been allies of the Turk, both were friendly to 
the Sick Man of the East, and they made the most of 
the demonstration as a political manoeuvre against 
Russia. 

The Wahash was quite the finest ship of the for- 
eign fleet and also the largest. Her tonnage was in 
excess of that allowed for foreign men-of-war in the 
Bosphorus by an international agreement w^hich had 
its origin in the mutual jealousy of the powers lest 
one should get advantage of the others. Of course 
the United States had no interest in the interplay of 
European politics, and morally the fact of the size 
of the Wabash did not matter at all. But Lord Strat- 
ford de Redcliffe, the British ambassador, did not 
see it that way. In his position as spokesman for 
the British in a period of preponderant British influ- 
ence in the Orient, he was in the habit of giving the 
Sultan orders. So the word came to Flag-Officer 
La Valette that the Wahash must depart. 

Meanwhile our very able American minister, Mr. 
Williams, had become a little weary, as had the other 
foreign ministers, over Lord de Redcliffe's autocratic 
methods. We were already making the Wahash 
ready for departure when I went with Flag-Ofiicer 



THE MIDSHIPMAN CRUISE 27 

La Valette as his aide to see the Selemlik, when the 
Sultan makes his weekly public visit to the mosque. 
Those who have witnessed this brilliant and pictur- 
esque ceremony in later times, so pregnant with 
meaning to Mohammedans, tell me that it is little 
changed. The Sultan of Turkey, who is also Padi- 
shah of all Moslems, drives from the palace to the 
mosque between banks of soldiers, surrounded by 
his brilliantly uniformed staff and followed by some 
of the ladies of the harem. 

When he came out of the mosque he did a very 
unusual thing, we were told, for so formal an oc- 
casion. He came over toward the little group of 
American naval officers among the contingent of for- 
eigners and, addressing Flag-Officer La Valette, he 
said that he had heard we were about to depart and 
he asked us to remain; otherwise he would be de- 
prived of the privilege of seeing our fine ship. As he 
spoke as the head of the government of Turkey, and 
we were in Turkish waters, Flag-Officer La Valette 
changed his plans. 

No doubt Abdul Mejiid, who, like later sultans, 
was beset by European chancelleries and never 
missed an opportunity of playing one power against 
another, enjoyed this little hit at the officious guar- 
dianship of the British ambassador. At all events, 
nothing further was heard from Lord de Redcliffe, 
and the honors of the affair were with the Sultan 
\ and the Wabash, while all the other diplomats were 



28 GEORGE DEWEY 

probably chuckling. When his Majesty came on 
board we dressed ship most elaborately, and of course 
we flew the Turkish imperial flag in his honor. He 
saw to it that we had many special favors shown us. 
Among others was a trip up the Bosphorus on a 
government vessel. 

I imagine that back of the Sultan's action was 
the prompting of Mr. Williams, our minister. More- 
over, I know that his charming daughters did much 
to make the stay of the Wahash pleasant for the mid- 
shipmen attached to her. When I was in the harbor 
of Trieste on the way home from Manila, a Princess 
Mary de Ligouri, who lived there, asked the consul 
to take off her autograph album to secure my signa- 
ture. In looking over the signatures, which dated 
back forty years, I saw many Turkish ones, probably 
pashas and beys, and among the many Europeans 
those of some officers of the JVabash. I looked at 
her card. Princess Mary de Ligouri! Was it pos- 
sible that this was Mary Williams, one of the daugh- 
ters of the former minister? 

I sent off word to the consul that, if she were, my 
barge was at her service; and that afternoon she 
came off to call. Much water had passed through 
the Bosphorus since we had last met, and both of 
us had white hair. She confessed that she did not 
remember me among the officers of the Wabash, and 
expressed her regret, in view of the fact that I had 
remembered her. I answered that this was only 



i 



THE MIDSHIPMAN CRUISE 29 

natural, as there were a good many American naval 
officers with our squadron, while there had been very 
few American girls in Turkey in 1858. Though she 
had lived so long abroad she was still a good American 
at heart, and she declared that she had fairly crowed 
when she heard of our victory at Manila, because 
she was surrounded by Austrians who had strong 
Spanish sympathies and thought that Spain would 
win. 

But to return to the midshipman cruise and to 
Constantinople. On the eve of Mohammed's birth- 
day the foreign fleet and the Turkish batteries fired 
a salute, and many of the minarets of the twin cities 
on either side of the Bosphorus were illuminated, 
making a beautiful sight. Before the festivities, 
which lasted for some days, were over we sailed for 
Beirut in Syria, with Minister Williams on board. 
At Beirut we made up a party for a journey over- 
land to Jerusalem, and our itinerary of sights was 
finally complete when, later, we visited Alexandria 
and had a glimpse of an Egypt whose backwardness, 
in contrast with the present Egypt of order and im- 
provement, is an unanswerable argument in favor 
of British occupation. 

Returning across the Mediterranean on the lei- 
surely homeward leg, we were at Genoa when Prince 
Napoleon arrived from Marseilles on the steam- 
yacht Reine Hortense, to conclude his marriage con- 
tract. From Genoa we went to Civita Vecchia, 



30 GEORGE DEWEY 

where we saluted the Pontifical flag, which was soon 
to cease to be recognized as an emblem of the Pope's 
temporal power by other nations. 

We were in the harbors of Italy, enjoying the 
privilege of onlooking neutrals, when the war be- 
tween France and Italy and Austria was in progress. 
Here it was, watching keenly for the news from day 
to day, that we heard of the victory of Solferino, 
which was a crushing blow to the Austrian power 
which the skilful machinations of Metternich had 
built. Napoleon III was in the zenith of his career. 
When I consider what a grand figure he was in the 
imagination of Europe when we fired salutes in honor 
of his birthday two months after this battle, it seems 
hard to realize what a small figure posterity has made 
of him. 

In spite of the diplomatic oflBciousness of Lord 
de Redcliffe at Constantinople, any memory of this 
Mediterranean cruise would not be complete with- 
out some mention of our pleasant relations with the 
British Navy. It has been a rule that wherever a 
British and an American ship meet their officers and 
their crews fraternize. The two services speak the 
same language; they have a common inheritance of 
naval discipline and customs. Exchanges of visits 
which are ceremonial where other navies are con- 
cerned become friendly calls in a congenial atmos- 
phere. When the 28th Regiment of British in- 
fantry passed out of the Bosphorus on H. M. S. 



THE MIDSHIPMAN CRUISE 31 

Perseverance, I remember that we gave them a 
hearty cheer; and as we left the Bay of Naples we 
played the British national air in honor of the Brit- 
ish ships at anchor and they answered with ours. 

Curiously enough, it was the summer of 1859 
that the celebrated "Blood is thicker than water" 
incident occurred. Flag-Officer Josiah Tatnall, who 
had won fame by a brilliant exploit at Vera Cruz in 
the war with Mexico, and won more later as a Con- 
federate officer, witnessing the heavy fire which the 
British chartered steamer Toey-wan was suffering 
from the Chinese forts in the Pei River, could not 
keep out of the fight. Turning to a junior officer he 
exclaimed, "Blood is thicker than water," and or- 
dered his boat manned, and with his own crew took 
the place of fallen British gunners in firing on the 
Chinese. 

Afterward he used the Toey-wan in towing up 
the British reserves for the storming party that at- 
tacked the forts. This is a service that the British 
navy has never forgotten. In the trying days at 
Manila after the battle, Sir Edward Chichester, as 
we shall see, exemplified the spirit of that stirring 
phrase of Tatnall's in a manner that was deeply 
gratifying. True international friendship is best 
tested in time of trial, and the British proved theirs 
in 1898. 

Aside from the great educational influence of 
that Mediterranean cruise, it had left a profound 



32 GEORGE DEWEY 

impression on the minds of the younger officers in 
their talks with the juniors of the British ships that 
the world was on the threshold of a revolution in 
navy-building. We little thought it was to come 
in our own land in a civil war which foreigners were 
then telling us was inevitable, while we, with our 
perspective dulled by familiarity with the events 
gradually bringing the cleavage between the North 
and the South to a crisis, were still fairly confident 
that a peaceful solution would be found. For two 
centuries there had been little change in naval science, 
in which the British had led; so that the older Brit- 
ish officers, in common with ours, held that the old 
wooden frigates and ships of the line were still in- 
vincible. 

To the French belongs not only the honor of in- 
venting the first shell guns, but also that of putting 
the first armor-clads afloat and in action. However, 
in 1842 the United States Congress had authorized 
the secretary of the navy to contract for ''the con- 
struction of a war steamer, shot and shell proof, 
upon the plan of the said Stevens," who was the 
Colonel John Stevens for whom Stevens Institute 
was named. This vessel was begun, but never 
finished. 

In the engagement of Sinope, in the Crimean 
War, 1853, shell guns had been used for the first 
time. The Russian shells set the Turkish ships on 
fire and destroyed them with almost no Russian loss. 



I 
I 



THE MIDSHIPMAN CRUISE 33 

In 1854 the French brought out to the Crimea three 
armored vessels which were Uttle more than floating 
batteries. Though they were placed close under the 
enemy's guns in the attack on the Russian forts at 
Kinburn in 1855, they were the deciding factor in 
the battle without having their armor once pierced. 

This, rather than the Monitor and Merrimac duel, 
was the first convincing evidence to progressive 
officers that the future of naval warfare was with 
the iron-clad. The British in their conservatism 
still hesitated, held by sentiment to their tall frig- 
ates and ships of the line, but the French immediately 
set about building armor-clads which no doubt could 
have made kindling-wood of the British ships of the 
line; and for a while, probably, had it become an 
issue between France and England, France might 
have become mistress of the seas. In the later period 
of our Mediterranean cruise, the British juniors were 
all talking of their first iron-clad, the Warrior, which 
had just been laid down and was to become the 
pioneer of the modern British navy. 

Sailing from Gibraltar on November 13, 1859, 
the Wabash arrived at the Brooklyn Navy Yard on 
December 16. Two days later I was detached, with 
three months' leave of absence, which I spent at 
home in Vermont. Afterward I was in the Pow- 
hatan and the Pawnee in a cruise to Caribbean and 
Gulf ports, visiting Vera Cruz and getting my first 
experience of tropic seas and tropic countries. Many 



34 GEORGE DEWEY 

of the ships of that time were in command of Southern 
officers. Indeed, it was charged by those of Northern 
birth that the South had been favored in the distri- 
bution of commands. If so, it was due to the fact 
that the administrations had been Democratic, and 
Southern statesmen then were dominant in national 
affairs. 

The captain of the Pawnee was Henry J. Har- 
stene, a South Carohna man, who had had a very 
interesting career. He had once been in command 
of one of the Aspinwall steamers, an assignment that 
many naval officers found most welcome on account 
of the high pay. How completely times have 
changed! Consider a naval officer of to-day being 
detached to command a transatlantic liner! It was 
also a saying that it was Southern officers who re- 
ceived the Aspinwall steamers, while Northern offi- 
cers had the less desirable billets of running to the 
coast of Africa. Harstene had won celebrity for 
finding Doctor Kane, the Arctic explorer, and he 
later took to England the British ship Resolute, which 
had been rescued from the Arctic Ocean by whalers, 
receiving the thanks of the British Government and 
many attentions. He was an eccentric as well as a 
very energetic man, and intensely Southern in his 
sympathies. 

At a banquet given in Vera Cruz he declared that 
if South Carolina seceded he would take the Pawnee 
into Charleston harbor and deliver her over to the 



THE MIDSHIPMAN CRUISE 35 

authorities of the State government. Our first heu- 
tenant, or executive officer, Marcy, a most capable 
man, was the son of the former secretary of state. 
When we asked him what would happen if the cap- 
tain started to make good his threat, he said quietly 
that he did not think that a captain of the navy 
might disobey the orders of his government to take 
his ship to the destination named in the orders — and 
this destination was not Charleston. 

On the homeward cruise we heard of an overdue 
merchant-ship which had last been sighted on the 
South Atlantic coast. So we kept close to the coast- 
line watching for her, but without success. When we 
were off Charleston I happened to be the officer of 
the deck. Our eccentric captain came on deck, clad, 
as he usually was, in a crazy-quilt blouse which he 
insisted was most comfortable. Its appearance bore 
out his statement that it was made of remnants of 
his wife's silk dresses, which probably partly ac- 
counted for his sentimental attachment to it. 

"Take in the top-gallant sails!" he commanded. 

I had them taken in. 

*'Now, set them again!" he commanded. 

I had them set. All the while he had been watch- 
ing me in a wild, abstracted fashion. 

"Now, call all hands and take them in properly!" 
he commanded. 

They had been taken in in a ship-shape manner 
the first time. But it was my business to obey. 



36 GEORGE DEWEY 

The summons of all hands brought Marcy and some 
of the other officers on deck. I have always thought 
that when Harstene gave the first order it was in 
his mind to turn our bow toward Charleston, and 
the taking in of the top-gallant sails was in prepara- 
tion for this. But when he saw the ship's whole 
crew before him, he realized his folly, for he let the 
Pawnee keep her course. 

Leaving the navy at the outbreak of the Civil 
War, he returned to South Carolina, and later died 
there; but I have often wondered how Marcy 
would have dealt with the situation if he had 
actually started the Pawnee into Charleston harbor. 
I am certain that she would not have gone very far. 
Although there were so many Southern officers in 
command of ships when the war began, there was 
not one who did not give in his resignation in a dig- 
nified manner, without attempting to turn his ship 
over to the Confederates. 

Returning to the Naval Academy in January, 
1861, I took my final examination, which brought 
me, at the age of twenty-three, through the grades 
of passed midshipman and master to that of lieu- 
tenant, in April. I was now a full-fledged and com- 
missioned naval officer. It seems that I had not 
altogether wasted my time in festivities ashore in 
Europe, for in this final examination I was advanced 
to number three in my class. Of the two men above 
me, Reed and Howell, Reed was retired as a cap- 




From a photograph by Harris 'd Emn 



LIEUTENANT-COMMANDER DEWEY AT THE 
AGE OF TWENTY-NINE 



THE MIDSHIPMAN CRUISE 37 

tain, and Howell, who afterward became a rear- 
admiral, was mentioned in 1897 ^r the command 
of the Asiatic Squadron, which I received, while he 
was given the European Squadron. As I had fin- 
ished my first year as thirty-third, I was able to 
report to my father that I had continually improved; 
and I might say, in view of his warning at the time 
of my appointment, that I had done "the rest'* 
reasonably well. 



CHAPTER IV 
BEGINNING OF THE CIVIL WAR 

After the Napoleonic wars an exhausted world 
knew a long period of peace, which, until the begin- 
ning of the Civil War, had been broken only by our 
war with Mexico in 1846, the Crimean War in 1854, 
and the Franco-Austrian War in 1859. This period 
had seen the development of steam. It had ushered 
in the great age of inventive genius and industrial 
organization in which we now live. 

As Mexico had no navy our war with her had 
given us no naval experience of value except that of 
the mobility of steam-vessels on a blockade and in 
co-operation with the landing of troops. In place 
of sails, dependent on the variability of the winds, 
had come a motive power equally dependable in a 
ten-knot breeze or a calm. Our older officers had 
to admit that for expeditiousness in carrying mes- 
sages, in getting in and out of harbors and landing 
troops, steam did have the advantage over sail, and 
that it was a valuable auxiliary, but they still main- 
tained that the talk about iron-clads as fighting-ships 
belonged to the realm of theorists and dreamers. 

Later came the action at Sinope in the Crimea, 

of which I have already spoken, when the progres- 

38 



BEGINNING OF THE CIVIL WAR 39 

sives saw their prophecies fulfilled by the success of 
the French floating batteries which led to the con- 
struction of the first iron-clads in Europe. The naval 
lessons of the Franco-Austrian War were as insig- 
nificant as those of the Mexican; but at the decisive 
land battle of Solferino rifles in place of smooth- 
bore cannon were used for the first time in battle. 
This innovation, as vital in arms as that of iron 
ship-building, was the first step toward the enor- 
mous range of modern guns. It remained for the 
Civil War to test iron-clads in action, as well as the 
rifled gun, and also the ram. In the case of the ram 
the innovation was only the renewal of a form of 
attack of the days of the Roman galleys when the 
mobility of the vessel had been dependent upon the 
sweat of slaves. But the ram was soon to become 
again obsolete. It is inconceivable that with the 
long-range guns of later days opposing ships can 
ever survive long enough to come to close quarters, 
except when one or the other has already surrendered. 
There was a saying in the sixties that the men of 
1840 in our navy would have been more at home in 
the ships of Drake's fleet or in those of Spain's In- 
vincible Armada than in the iron-clads of the Civil 
War; and I think that it is also safe to say that the 
men brought up to service in such a vessel as the 
Mississippi, in which I saw my first service in the 
Civil War, would be more at home in the Armada 
than in a ship of the Dreadnought class. The in- 



40 GEORGE DEWEY 

auguration of steam made naval science one of con- 
tinual change and development, which it still re- 
mains. 

It was borne home to the students of Annapolis 
in my day, as I have already indicated, that the 
officers of the navy, in its senior grades, should be 
men of progressive minds and of energetic and rapid 
action. Otherwise they would be quite unequal to 
the prompt adaptation of everything which the prog- 
ress of science and industry offered for their use. At 
the outbreak of the Civil War our navy had no staff, 
and nothing like an adequate organization. 

Mr. Lincoln had chosen Mr. Gideon Welles as 
his secretary of the navy. We are familiar with Mr. 
Welles's character through his very voluminous diary, 
which has lately been published. It has always been 
amazing to me how Mr. Welles was able to do so 
much writing and conduct the Navy Department in 
the midst of a great war. 

He was certainly a man of prodigious industry. 
His lack of technical knowledge would have been a 
great handicap, if it had not been for the selection 
of an assistant secretary of the navy whose training 
made him an excellent substitute for a chief of staff. 
Gustavus V. Fox had served in the navy, but had 
resigned and become a most successful man of busi- 
ness. We cannot overestimate the value of his in- 
telligent service to the country on meagre pay in 
sacrifice of private interests, for which he received 



BEGINNING OF THE CIVIL WAR 41 

hardly his fair due of honor. To him we owe the 
conception of the New Orleans campaign and, in 
part, the building of the Monitor, which took the 
mastery of Hampton Roads away from the Merrimac. 

Upon taking up the reins of office he found a 
naval personnel with no retiring age limit; and a 
state of demoralization. Under President Buchanan, 
the most ordinary preparations had been neglected 
in face of an inevitable conflict. Our ships were 
scattered over the seas. Some were on the coast of 
Africa, some in the Far East, and some in South 
American waters. The excuse for this was the pre- 
vailing naval custom of the time which made the 
navy a disseminated force to protect our citizens in 
case of trouble in distant lands, and also to protect 
our foreign commerce, which then was wide-spread 
and now, unfortunately, has become almost obsolete. 
Now the battle-ship fleets of all nations are concen- 
trated in home waters, and the cable keeps govern- 
ments in touch with any danger-spots, which may 
be reached promptly with fast cruisers. 

At the head of the officers' list at the beginning 
of 1861, were seventy-eight captains. A few of them, 
including Farragut, then quite unknown to the public, 
were men of energy who were in touch with the ten- 
dency of their time. But the great majority were 
unfitted for active service afloat. According to the 
existing law there was no supplanting them with 
younger men. The commanders, who were next in 



42 GEORGE DEWEY 

rank to the captains, were themselves fifty-eight or 
sixty years of age. Upper lieutenants were usually 
past forty, some being as old as fifty. David D. 
Porter, who was later to become an admiral, was 
only a lieutenant. Thornton, the executive officer 
of the Hartford, the flag-ship of the East India Squad- 
ron at that time, later to become the famous flag- 
ship of Farragut in the Gulf, had been in the service 
thirty-four years. 

Such a system was killing to ambition and enter- 
prise. It made mere routine men to face a crisis in 
which energy and initiative were needed. No subor- 
dinate was expected to undertake any responsibility 
on his own account. So used were the junior oflficers 
— these "boys" of forty and fifty to the old captains 
— to being subordinate machines that their one care 
was to escape official censure by any action on their 
own account. Promotion had become so clogged 
that, as the secretary of the navy had already put it 
in 1855, the system was "neither more nor less than 
elevating the incompetent and then ordering the un- 
promoted competent to do their work." 

If the men of forty and fifty were boys to those 
fine old veterans of the War of 1812, who had been 
rendered by age incapable of active command, then 
we young men out of Annapolis ranked as children. 
The first requirement, as Mr. Fox so well knew, was 
a complete and drastic reorganization of personnel, 
but not until December, 1861, was a law passed re- 



BEGINNING OF THE CIVIL WAR 43 

tiring all officers at the age of sixty-two, or after 
forty-five years of service. By this law, disregard- 
ing seniority, the President might put any captain 
or commander he chose in charge of a squadron with 
the rank of flag-officer. 

The next year the grades of rear-admiral and 
commodore were established and the President had 
his authority for selection of the fit further strength- 
ened. In this way the younger men, by virtue of 
their progressive training and ideas and the inevita- 
ble initiative, which youth develops in time of war, 
came to accept readily responsibilities which would 
have frightened men of fifty a few years previously. 
With many new ships going into commission, we 
were very short-handed, which accounts for the fact 
that I was to become executive of the Mississippi 
at the age of twenty-four. 

Aside from the loss in numbers by retirement at 
the very beginning of the struggle, there was the loss 
due to the resignations of the officers who saw fit to 
follow the flags of their States and enter the Con- 
federate service. One can only say that the latter 
responded to the call of duty in a period when the 
constitutional right to secession was sincerely held; 
and that many brilliant men, who must have risen 
to high place had they remained loyal, knew defeat 
and the deprivation of honor and pleasure of service 
in their profession in after years. They took the 
risk and they lost. 



44 GEORGE DEWEY 

But not all Southern officers held the secession 
view. Loyalty was stronger relatively in the navy 
than in the army, for the reason that the naval 
officer felt an affection for the flag born of the senti- 
ment of our splendid record in the War of 1812, and 
a realization born of his foreign cruises, that our 
strength before the other nations of the world, who 
selfishly wished to see our growing power divided, 
was in unity. Besides, naval life separates one from 
State and political associations. 

It was inevitable, however, that Southern officers 
should feel that they would be held under suspicion by 
the National Government at a period when feeling 
ran so high. This was a contributing factor In the 
decision of many who hesitated long before they 
went over to the Confederacy. Flag-Officer Strib- 
ling, commander of the East India Squadron, was 
relieved simply because he was a South Carolina 
man, though he did not enter the service of the Con- 
federacy after he returned home. Farragut, born in 
Tennessee, was one of the Southern officers who not 
only remained loyal, but of whose loyalty from the 
first there was never any question by the authorities. 
In his outright fashion in speaking to his Southern 
comrades, he left no doubt of his position, and he 
also warned them that they were going to have a 
"devil of a time" of it before they were through 
with their secession enterprise. It Is only fair to 
add that they also gave us a "devil of a time." 



BEGINNING OF THE CIVIL WAR 45 

Quite different factors entered into the war afloat 
and the war on shore. The South had soldiers, and 
It could find rifles for them. But it had few ships, 
and it lacked the resources with which to build more. 
Such a thing as offensive tactics at sea, except by 
the commerce-destroyers of the Alabama class, and 
in its harbors, except by river iron-clads, was out of 
the question. The offensive must be entirely on our 
side; the defensive was the enemy's, and splendidly 
and desperately he conducted it. 

Our first duty was the blockade of all that im- 
mense coast-line from Hampton Roads southward to 
Key West and westward to the boundaries of Mexico. 
As the South was not a manufacturing country, it 
was dependent for funds on the export of cotton and 
on Europe for manufactured material. We had to 
close its ports and we had to prevent the running of 
the blockade wherever possible. Moreover, a block- 
ade which was not effective did not hold in inter- 
national law. Never before had any navy, and 
never since has any navy, attempted anything like 
such an Immense task. That of the Japanese off 
Port Arthur was comparatively insignificant in the 
extent of coast-line which had to be guarded. At the 
close of the war the United States, In carrying on the 
war and blockade, had six hundred ships in com- 
mission. 

In the strategy of the campaign on land the navy 
played an Important offensive part which is unique 



46 GEORGE DEWEY 

in naval history. President Lincoln wished the Mis- 
sissippi to flow "unvexed" to the sea. Once the 
great river was in the possession of the Federal Gov- 
ernment, we had cut the Confederacy in two and 
separated its armies from the rich sources of supplies 
to the westward. In order to accomplish this feat, 
which was not finished until Vicksburg and Port 
Hudson were taken, a number of gun-boats built for 
the purpose were to work their way down the river, 
while we of the main fighting force of the Gulf Squad- 
ron were to begin our part in working up the river, 
running Forts Jackson and St. Philip and laying 
New Orleans under our guns. After my pleasant 
midshipman cruise, seeing the sights of the Medi- 
terranean, I was to witness a style of warfare as 
picturesque as it was hazardous and exacting in its 
hardships. 

Cruising in the open sea on the lookout for an 
enemy whom you are to meet in a decisive battle 
is simple, indeed, compared to the experience that 
was to try our nerves on the Mississippi. Here was 
a sufficient outlet for the abundant spirits of any 
young lieutenant or midshipman. It was war for 
us for four years, a war which brought us so fre- 
quently under fire, and required such constant vigil- 
ance, that war appeared to be almost a normal state 
of affairs to us. 

The leaders on the other side were men bred to 
the same traditions as we were. Officers fought 



BEGINNING OF THE CIVIL WAR 47 

officers with whom they had gone to school, and 
with whom they had served and had messed. The 
recollection of old comradeship, while softening the 
amenities of a civil conflict, also touched us the more 
deeply with the sense of its horrors and waste, and 
brought to its conduct something of the spirit of 
professional rivalry. Unlike the officers of volun- 
teer infantry who marched South to meet strangers 
against whom a strong sectional feeling had been 
aroused, we knew our adversaries well. We were 
very fond of them personally. To us they had 
neither horns nor tails. We felt that they were fine 
fellows who were in the wrong, and we knew that 
they entertained the same feeling toward us. We 
did not mean that they should beat us. They did 
not mean that we should beat them. This ac- 
counted for the fearful stubbornness with which we 
fought; and future generations, who may wish that 
all the energy spent had not been against brothers 
but in a common cause against a foreign foe, can at 
least rejoice in the heritage of the skill and courage 
displayed in a struggle which has no equal in magni- 
tude or determination, unless in the Napoleonic wars. 
On May 10, 1861, I reported for duty on board 
the old side-wheeler Mississippi (known as a steam- 
frigate), on which I served until she was set on fire 
by the batteries of Port Hudson in March, 1863, 
when she perished on the river for which she was 
christened. It was the wonder of her funnels, spout- 



48 GEORGE DEWEY 

ing smoke to make her wheels move, and the sight 
of her guns that so impressed the Japanese, when 
Commodore Perry appeared off Tokio with her as 
his flag-ship, that they concluded the treaty which 
opened up Japan to Western progress. From her, 
Mississippi Bay, in the neighborhood of Yokohama, 
takes its name. 

She was now assigned to the blockade of the 
Gulf, and her captain was T. O. Selfridge, who was 
in command of a steam man-of-war for the first time. 
As yet the blockade was hardly maintained in a rigid 
fashion. The old captains were so fearful of the 
loss of their ships that they were inclined to take 
few risks. A quasi-engagement near the mouths of 
the Mississippi took place, which was hardly more 
gratifying to the navy than Bull Run was to the 
army. The steam sloop Richmond^ two sailing sloops, 
and a small side-wheel steamer, having entered the 
river, were surprised at anchor at the head of the 
passage just before daybreak by a ram, later known 
as the Manassas, which had been originally a Boston 
tug-boat. She rammed the Richmond and drove the 
Federal ships into retreat. This incident, known as 
"Pope's Run," from the name of the Federal com- 
mander, was pretty exasperating to the pride of 
service of the more energetic-minded officers of the 
navy. 

The Mississippi saw only the dreary monotony 
of blockading without any fighting until Flag-Ofl[icer 



BEGINNING OF THE CIVIL WAR 49 

David G. Farragut arrived off Ship Island in Feb- 
ruary, 1862, to begin the campaign which was to lay- 
New Orleans under our guns. From the day that he 
took command the atmosphere in the neighborhood 
of Ship Island, which was our important naval base 
for the Gulf, seemed to be surcharged with his en- 
ergy. When Mr. Fox had proposed the attack on 
New Orleans, the most wealthy and populous city 
of the Confederacy, Mr. Lincoln had said: "Go 
ahead, but avoid a disaster"; by which he meant, 
no doubt, that in case of failure he did not want to 
see a loss which would be a serious blow to Northern 
prestige. 

After a canvass of all the captains in the navy, 
Farragut, on the recommendation of Mr. Fox and 
of Porter, had been chosen for this enterprise, which 
was to make his reputation. Though there is truth 
in the saying, *' Young men for war, and old men for 
counsel," it does not always hold. Farragut was not 
one of the captains whose initiative had been weak- 
ened by age. The only criticism ever offered of 
him was that possibly he had too much of it. But 
that proved a very winning fault for him. He was 
sixty; which I, at least, ought not to consider too 
old, as I myself was sixty, or within two years of 
statutory retiring age, at the outbreak of the Span- 
ish War. 

In the late seventies, when there seemed no hope 
of our ever having a modern navy, and many officers 



50 GEORGE DEWEY 

were talking of voluntary retirement, I always an- 
swered : 

"Not until the law makes me. While you are 
on the active list there is a chance for action." 

Farragut has always been my ideal of the naval 
officer, urbane, decisive, indomitable. Whenever I 
have been in a difficult situation, or in the midst of 
such a confusion of details that the simple and right 
thing to do seemed hazy, I have often asked myself, 
"What would Farragut do?" In the course of the 
preparations for Manila Bay I often asked myself 
this question, and I confess that I was thinking of 
him the night that we entered the Bay, and with the 
conviction that I was doing precisely what he would 
have done. Valuable as the training of Annapolis 
was, it was poor schooling beside that of serving 
under Farragut in time of war. 

Commander Melancthon Smith succeeded Cap- 
tain Selfridge in command of the Mississippi, before 
the advance on New Orleans. By this time the six 
officers who were senior to me had all gone to other 
ships. With their departure I ranked next to the 
captain and became executive officer. 

I was very young for the post, but fortunately 
looked rather old for my years. Indeed, I remember 
being asked one day, when there was a question 
about seniority for a court-martial, whether or not 
I was older than another lieutenant, who was in fact 
my senior by ten years. When Farragut explained 




CAPTAIN MELANCTHON SMITH, COMMANDER OF THE 
"MISSISSIPPI" 



BEGINNING OF THE CIVIL WAR 51 

to Captain Smith that there was complaint on the 
part of some officers on the navy Hst about my hold- 
ing a position higher than theirs, the captain said: 

''Dewey is doing all right. I don't want a 
stranger here." 

Farragut, who was fond of the captain, answered: 

''Then we will let him stay." 

For many trying months I was about as close to 
Smith officially as it is possible for one man to be to 
another, and I learned to know and enjoy all his 
qualities. His was a pronounced character, abso- 
lutely fearless, with something of Farragut's grim 
determination in the midst of battle. He smoked 
continually, lighting one cigar with the butt of an- 
other, whether shells were bursting around him or 
he was lounging on deck. 

In action he became most energetic; but in the 
periods between action he was inclined to leave all 
detail to his executive. His hobby, except in the 
matter of cigars, was temperance. I recollect that 
he saw me take a glass of champagne that was offered 
to me when I was in the house of a Union officer 
after the troops had taken New Orleans. He was 
puffing at a cigar as usual. 

"Dewey, do you drink champagne.?" he asked. 

I had not tasted any for months, and very hard 
months they had been. 

"Yes, I do when it is as good as this. I don't 
very often get a chance, these days," I answered. 



52 GEORGE DEWEY 

"If I had known that," he said, very soberly, 
"I do not think that I should have had so much 
confidence in you." 

However, he made a report after the loss of our 
ship that indicated that he still thought pretty well 
of me; and on his death after the war, when he had 
reached the rank of rear-admiral, he left me his 
epaulets and cocked hat. 

He was also quite as religious as Farragut, who 
had unswerving belief in Providence as he had faith 
in the righteousness of the Union cause. One of the 
stories that went the rounds about Farragut was 
that once after he had said grace at dinner in his 
cabin he followed his amen with an outburst of 
**It's hot as hell here!" The time was midsummer 
on the Mississippi. 

In the course of the preparations for taking New 
Orleans, when every man Jack of us was hard at it 
from sunrise to sunset, there was, naturally, some 
profanity. The men swore over their exasperating 
task, and I have no doubt that, as the director of 
their efforts, I may have sworn. One day, when we 
had a particularly trying job on hand, the captain 
appeared on deck from his cabin, where he had been 
overhearing the flow of sailor language. He looked 
as if he had borne about all he could. He told me 
to have all the crew lay aft. I ordered them aft. 
Then he said: 

"Hereafter, any officer caught swearing will be 



BEGINNING OF THE CIVIL WAR 53 

put under suspension, and any man caught swearing 
will be put in double irons." 

Having delivered this ultimatum he returned to 
his cabin. There was an end of swearing on the 
Mississippi from that minute. Profanity in the 
navy, particularly on the part of officers, was a relic 
of the days of rations of grog and boarding with the 
cutlass. An oath by an officer in giving a command, 
however exasperated he is, has ceased to be a means 
of expressing emphasis. The crew of the Mississippi 
found that they could work just as well without 
swearing. 

And how we did work! Many of the junior offi- 
cers were volunteers from the mercantile marine, 
not yet familiar with naval customs, and many of 
the men were practically raw recruits yet untrained. 
In fact, a leavening of experienced naval officers had 
more or less to act as teachers for the greatly in- 
creased personnel in the midst of active war condi- 
tions. 

The Pensacola and our ship, the Mississippi, 
were the heaviest draught vessels that had attempted 
to go up the river. On account of our heavy gun- 
power it was most important that we should take 
part in the forthcoming battle of New Orleans. Far- 
ragut already had the rest of the fleet in the river 
waiting for us to get over the bar of the Southwest 
Pass when we came in from the blockade. We light- 
ened ship by removing most of our spars and rigging 



54 GEORGE DEWEY 

and by emptying our bunkers. With our boats we 
took a day's supply of coal from the collier each day. 
Under a full head of steam, and assisted by the use 
of anchors and by tow-lines from the steamers of the 
mortar flotilla, both the Mississippi and the Pensa- 
cola worked their way through a foot of mud over 
the bar. 

But the forty-gun frigate Colorado had to remain 
outside. Her crew was largely distributed among 
other ships. Her captain, Theodorus Bailey, a most 
gallant old officer, did not want to miss being in the 
forthcoming engagement. Farragut told him that he 
might go on board any ship he chose and such ship 
should lead in the attack, a suggestion which, of 
course, had to reckon with a welcome from the com- 
manding officer of the ship chosen. No naval cap- 
tain wants another man who ranks him on board, 
particularly during an action. 

Captain Smith expressed himself very candidly 
to this eff^ect when Captain Bailey concluded that he 
should like to go on board the Mississippi, and Far- 
ragut decided to put Captain Bailey as a divisional 
commander on board the Cayuga, one of the gun- 
boats which was to lead the first division. Thus 
Captain Bailey had a better assignment than he an- 
ticipated, while all the captains of the larger vessels 
were equally pleased at the arrangement. 

Between us and New Orleans were the two strong 
fortS; St. Philip and Jackson, facing each other at a 



I 



BEGINNING OF THE CIVIL WAR 55 

strategic point across a bend in the river where the 
channel was narrow; and above them was an ob- 
struction of chain-booms and anchored hulks, which 
we must pass through. Once we had cleared a way 
through the obstruction we had to face the Confed- 
erate River Defense Squadron. 

David D. Porter, now advanced to the rank of 
commander, had brought from the North a mortar 
flotilla of which great things were expected. It was 
thought that the mortars might reduce the forts by 
their heavy bombardment, or at least silence their 
guns while the fleet made its passage. There were 
twenty of the mortar schooners, each mounting a 
thirteen-inch mortar. Porter put them in position 
close to the wooded bank of the river, quite hidden 
from the forts, and disguised them by securing tree 
branches to their masts. 

On the 1 8th, the day after we were over the bar, 
he opened fire. By carefully weighing the powder 
and measuring the angle excellent practice was made. 
All night long, at regular intervals of about ten min- 
utes, a mortar shell would rise, its loop in the air out- 
lined by the burning fuse, and drop into the forts. 
It must have been pretty hard for the gunners of 
the forts to get any sleep. We, with the fleet, were 
too busy to sleep much, but we were soon so accus- 
tomed to the noise, and so dog-tired when we had a 
chance to rest, that we could have slept in an inferno. 

Every day gained was vital to Farragut. One 



56 GEORGE DEWEY 

day might make the difference of having to face either 
one or both of the new Confederate iron-clads being 
rushed to completion with feverish haste. As so 
frequently happened, his celerity served him well. 

After crossing the bar the vessels had to be pre- 
pared for the river work before them. They were 
trimmed by the head, so that if they grounded it 
would be forward. In the swift current of the river, 
if we grounded aft the ship would at once turn with 
her head downstream. Where feasible, guns were 
mounted on the poops and forecastle, and howitzers 
in the tops, with iron bulwarks to protect the gun 
crews. Farragut believed in plenty of armament. 
From him we have that multum in parvo of tactics: 
**The best protection against an enemy's fire is a well- 
directed fire of your own." But heavy gun-power 
in relation to tonnage was a principle with our navy 
from its inception. 

It was an oddly assorted fleet that had been mob- 
ilized for the battle of New Orleans. A year had 
now elapsed since Sumter had been fired upon, and 
most of that time had been spent in getting ready for 
war, rather than in making war. As both sides were 
equally unprepared, the nation scarcely realized the 
effect of unpreparedness. How bitterly we would 
have realized it against a foe ready in all respects 
for conflict! It was not a matter of building a navy 
according to any deliberate and well-conceived plan, 
but of providing such material as we could in haste 




ADMIRAL DAVID G. FARRAGUT 



BEGINNING OF THE CIVIL WAR 57 

with the resources of the times, having In mind that 
we were In the midst of a revolution In naval war- 
fare, when any enterprising development like the 
Monitor or the ram might upset all calculations. 

First, Farragut had the big screw sloops Hart- 
ford, Pensacola, Richmond, and Brooklyn; then the 
side-wheeler Mississippi; the screw corvettes Oneida, 
Veruna, and Iroquois; nine screw gun-boats of five 
hundred tons, which were known as the *' ninety-day 
gun-boats," because, with characteristic American en- 
terprise In a crisis, they had been turned out by our 
ship-yards In ninety days. In addition was the mor- 
tar flotilla, not to mention ferry-boats and many other 
craft that did service of one sort or another. Far- 
ragut was always on the move, overseeing every- 
thing In person, breathing an air of confidence and 
Imparting a spirit of efficiency. In those days he 
went from ship to ship, rowed by sailors, but later 
he had a steam tender. 

There was hardly a night that the flag-ship did 
not signal to send boats to tow fire-rafts. These 
fire-rafts were one of the pleasantries of the enemy 
to try our nerves. In connection with the luminous 
flight of the mortar shells, they off^ered us quite all 
the spectacular display that we were able to appre- 
ciate. A fire-raft floating down with the current at 
five knots an hour, flaming high with Its tar and 
resin, would Illuminate the river from bank to bank; 
and If It could have rested alongside a ship for even 



58 GEORGE DEWEY 

a few minutes it must inevitably have set the ship 
on fire. Launches used to throw grapnels into the 
rafts, and other boats, forming line, would tow them 
to the shore, where they would burn themselves out. 

On the night of the 20th of April occurred one of 
those brilliant exploits of daring courage so common 
in the Civil War that they became merely incidents 
of its progress. Any one of them in a smaller war, 
when public attention is not diverted over a vast 
scene of activity, would have won permanent fame. 
Lieutenant Caldwell, commanding one of the ninety- 
day gun-boats, the Itasca, and Lieutenant Crosby, 
commanding another, the Pinola, undertook the duty 
of cutting the obstruction across the river above the 
forts. Until there was a way through this, the whole 
fleet would be held helpless under the, fire of the forts; 
while turning for retreat in the swift current would 
have meant confusion. 

During a heavy bombardment from the mortars 
they slipped upstream under cover of the bank. At 
times so rapid were Porter's gunners in their work 
that there were nine shells in the air at once. His 
object, of course, was to keep down the fire of the 
forts as much as possible in case the Itasca and the 
Pinola were discovered. They were discovered, but 
not until they had reached the obstruction. 

As they had taken out their masts it was difficult 
for the gunners in the uncertain light to distinguish 
the gun-boats from the anchored hulks that had 



BEGINNING OF THE CIVIL WAR 59 

been used In making the obstruction complete. 
Laboring under fire, the gun-boats succeeded in a 
task which took them hours, and which would have 
been suicidal had the forts possessed a modern search- 
light. It was concluded in dramatic fashion. After 
Caldwell, in the course of his and Crosby's ma- 
noeuvring, had got above the obstruction, with a full 
head of steam and the current to assist him, he 
rammed a stretch of chain, which snapped and left 
a space broad enough for any vessel of the fleet to 
pass through. 



CHAPTER V 
THE BATTLE OF NEW ORLEANS 

About midnight on April 23 came the signal 
for which we were all waiting, two red lights at the 
peak of the flag-ship. It meant that the fleet was 
to get under way. We were ready and eager for the 
test after the long strain of preparation, in which all 
manner of ingenious suggestions had been applied 
in order that the fleet might get by the forts with 
as little damage as possible. Our hulls had been 
daubed with river mud in order to make them less 
visible in the darkness. Captain Alden, of the Rich- 
mondy had the idea, which worked out excellently, 
of having the decks around the guns whitewashed 
so that the implements required in the working of 
the guns could be easily identified by the gunners 
as they picked them up for use. 

And with what insistent care we had drilled the 
guns' crews in order to insure rapidity of loading 
and firing! To protect vital parts of the ships from 
the impact of projectiles, chain cables were secured 
to the ship's sides. As the Mississippi was a side- 
wheeler we stowed our cables in the coal bunkers, 
between the wheels and the boilers and machinery. 

Though we hoped that the fire of the mortars might 

60 



THE BATTLE OF NEW ORLEANS 6i 

keep down the fire of the forts, it was evident from 
all these precautions that Farragut was not over- 
sanguine on this score. Before the fleet started, 
Lieutenant Caldwell, early in the evening, made an- 
other trip up the river to make sure that the way was 
clear, and this time a cutter actually rowed through 
the opening and sounded with a lead line. 

The Mississippi's position in the advance was 
directly astern of the Pensacola in the first division 
under Captain Bailey, while Farragut with the Hart- 
ford led the second division. Our orders were to 
keep in column, maintaining distance from the ship 
ahead. It was evident that the ship in the lead 
would have the advantage, perhaps, of getting well 
by the forts before she was discovered, while the 
ships following would be subject to any delays 
caused by her. Captain Smith, of the Mississippi, 
had opposed trying to make the passage in the night. 
His idea was to go ahead full speed by day, fighting 
our way. Thus there would be no danger of running 
aground and we would know just what we were doing. 

"I cannot see in the night," he declared, with 
characteristic brevity. "I am going to leave that 
to you, Dewey. You have younger eyes." 

He took charge of the battery, while I took up 
my post on the hurricane deck from which we handled 
the ship. For a man of twenty-four I was having 
my share of responsibility. I was also to have my 
baptism of fire. But I had little time to consider 



62 GEORGE DEWEY 

the psychology of an experience which is the source 
of much wonder and speculation to the uninitiated. 
When it comes, you are utterly preoccupied with 
your work; you are doing what you have been taught 
is your duty to do as a trained unit on a man-of-war. 
Only after the danger is over is it time to reflect. 
The wait before action is the period of self-conscious- 
ness, which ends with the coming of the first shot 
from the enemy or the command to "Fire!" from 
your own side. 

Adapting our speed to that of the Pensacola, 
which was without lights, as all the vessels were, we 
steamed ahead, while the booming of the howitzers 
and the swish of their shells through the air made 
music for our progress. 

Just as the Pe?isacola drew abreast of the forts 
the enemy discovered her and opened fire. We were 
so near the forts that we could hear the commands 
of the officers. The Pensacola stopped and fired both 
broadsides which at first seemed to demoralize the 
enemy. 

A second time the Pensacola stopped and dis- 
charged broadsides; and it was soon evident from 
the fact that the forts kept on firing that, although 
the mortars might reduce the fire from the forts, 
they could by no means silence them; nor could the 
Pensacola, which had the heaviest armament of any 
of our ships, silence them except for a brief interval 
during the effect of her broadsides. Therefore, all 




00 






THE BATTLE OF NEW ORLEANS 63 

the ships, In order to get by, must run the gauntlet 
of a heavy fire. 

It was most puzzHng to me why the Pensacola 
had stopped, in view of the orders to steam past 
without delay. Either she could not resist pausing 
to engage the forts, or else there was something wrong 
with her engines. The latter, I believe, was the real 
reason. At all events, she did stop twice, which 
meant that we also had to stop. The Mississippi 
herself was already under fire and returning it, and 
while my attention was centred in trying to keep 
astern of the Pensacola, I received warning of an 
attack from another quarter. 

Farragut had assigned to us Mr. Waud, an artist 
for an illustrated weekly. When he had asked for 
the best position from which to witness the spectacle 
Captain Smith advised the foretop, where we had a 
twenty-four-pound howitzer. Waud was an observ- 
ant as well as a gallant man, and from the foretop 
he could see everything that was taking place even 
better than we could from the hurricane deck. 

''Here is a queer-looking customer on our port 
bow," he called to me. 

Looking in the direction which he indicated I 
saw what appeared like the back of an enormous 
turtle painted lead color, which I identified as the 
ram Manassas, which had driven the Federal ships 
from the mouth of the river the previous autumn, in 
the action called "Pope's Run." She was rebuilt 



64 GEORGE DEWEY 

entirely for the purpose of ramming, and if she were 
able to deliver a full blow in a vital spot she was 
capable of disabling any ship in the fleet. 

The darkness and the confusion perfectly favored 
the role for which she was designed. By prompt 
action we might put a dangerous opponent out of 
commission before she had done any damage. There 
was no time in which to ask the advice of the cap- 
tain, who was busy with the battery below. I called 
to starboard the helm and turned the Mississippi's 
bow toward the Manassas, with the intention of run- 
ning her down, being confident that our superior 
tonnage must sink her if we struck her fairly. 

But A. F. Warley, her commander, a former 
officer of our navy, was too quick for us. His last 
service had been in the Mississippi in a round-the- 
world cruise. He appreciated her immobility in 
comparison with the mobility of his own little craft 
and sheered off to avoid us. But, then, sheering in, 
he managed to strike us a glancing blow just abaft 
the port paddle-wheel. 

The effect of the shock was that of running 
aground. The Mississippi trembled and listed and 
then righted herself. When I saw the big hole that 
the ram had left in our side I called, "Sound the 
pumps!" to the carpenter, an experienced old sea- 
man, who was on the main deck near me. 

"I have already, sir," he answered, "and there 
is no water in the wells." 



THE BATTLE OF NEW ORLEANS 65 

He had acted promptly and instinctively in his 
line of duty. If there were no water I knew that 
there was nothing to worry about. It was the 
sturdy construction of the Mississippi that had saved 
us from serious damage. As she was one of our earli- 
est steam men-of-war, her builders had taken ex- 
treme care lest the fear expressed in some quarters 
that her engines, making about ten revolutions a 
minute, would shake her to pieces, should be justi- 
fied. She was filled in solid between the frames. 
The impact of the ram, which would have sunk any 
other ship in the fleet, had taken out a section of 
solid timber seven feet long, four feet broad, and four 
inches deep. About fifty copper bolts had been cut 
as clean as if they were hair under a razor's edge. I 
remember seeing their bright, gleaming ends when I 
looked down from the hurricane deck in my first 
glimpse of that hole in our side. 

If Warley, who knew just where the Mississippi 
was vulnerable, had been able to strike forward of 
the paddle-wheel, as he evidently was planning to 
do when we caught sight of the Manassas and went 
for her, he would have disabled one of our leading 
ships. This would have been a feather in his cap. 
But he gave a very lively account of himself, how- 
ever, before the night was over, and the Mississippi 
had another chance at him. 

The formation of the ships in our rear was pretty 
well broken up. Every ship was making its own 



66 GEORGE DEWEY 

way in the melee out of danger. Particularly was 
this true of the second division, under the lead of the 
Hartford with Farragut on board. When she came 
abreast of the forts the enemy had steadied down. 
The prefatory period of bombardment by Porter's 
flotilla had hardened them to mortar fire; and now 
they were hardened to broadsides and had the range 
of the passing ships. So they stuck to their guns 
calmly and made the most of their own fire. The 
Hartford and Brooklyn received a terrific cannonade. 

Meanwhile the Ma^iassas, like some assassin in 
the night, had proceeded down through the fleet, 
greeted by fire from our ships whenever she was 
recognized, and watching a chance for a murderous 
thrust. She succeeded in putting a hole in the 
Brooklyn, which might have been most serious were 
it not for the anchor chains on the Brooklyn s side 
which resisted the blow. 

Throughout the passage of the forts fire-rafts 
were coming down-stream to add to the picturesque- 
ness of the lurid scene and the diflliculty of keeping 
our course. One of these rafts nearly brought the 
career of Farragut's flag-ship to a close. It was 
pushed by a little thirty-five-ton tug called the 
Mosher, manned by a dozen men under the com- 
mand of a man named Sherman. To him belongs 
the credit of one of the most desperate strokes of 
heroism I have ever known. It is an example of 
how the South, with its limited resources, was able 




"I REMEMBER SEEING THEIR BRIGHT GLEAMING ENDS WHEN 

I LOOKED DOWN FROM THE HURRICANE DECK IN MY 

FIRST GLIMPSE OF THE HOLE IN OUR SIDE" 



J 



THE BATTLE OF NEW ORLEANS e-j 

to maintain its gallant struggle for four years against 
great odds. 

His tug had no guns and no armor. In the face 
of certain destruction from the guns of the Hartjord, 
he pushed the raft against the Hartford's side. The 
Moshers captain and crew all lost their lives, as far 
as is known, but they had the satisfaction of seeing 
flames darting up the Hartford'' s rigging and burst- 
ing through the ports, which, thanks to the disci- 
pline of her crew, were quenched. But though he 
had lost his flag-ship, Farragut would have gone past 
the forts with what remained of his fleet. We may 
be sure of that. 

In passing the forts the Mississippi had fired 
grape and five-second shell from alternate guns. I 
was surprised to see how well the forts stood our 
own pounding and also how well we stood theirs. 
Though the Mississippi had been hit a number of 
times, our loss had been trifling — two killed and a 
few wounded. To judge by the noise, and the 
flashes of the mortars in air, and the guns from the 
forts, and the busy fleet, it seemed as if the de- 
struction done must be far worse than it was. 

I remember, however, as we passed out of range 
of the forts, thinking that some of the ships cer- 
tainly would not get by. Three failed, these being 
in the rear of the second division. Of course we 
were all new to war. Neither our aim nor the Con- 
federates' was as accurate as it was later; for ex- 



68 GEORGE DEWEY 

ample, at Port Hudson. In time we learned to pay 
attention less to the quantity of fire and more to the 
extent of its effect. 

From all we had heard we were expecting a hard 
fight once we were beyond the obstructions above 
the forts. The Confederates had taken pains not to 
minimize the reports of the formidability of their 
River Defence Squadron. But, as so often happens, 
the enemy in reality was not anything like so pow- 
erful as rumor had made him. The big iron-clad 
Mississippi had not been completed in time to leave 
her dock in New Orleans, while her sister ship, the 
Louisiana^ unable to move under her own steam, had 
been anchored above the obstructions to play the 
part of a floating battery. 

The business of taking care of the other vessels 
of the Confederate River Defence Squadron fell to 
the other vessels of our fleet. The Mississippi had 
an individual score to settle. Dawn was breaking 
and we were just making out the ships around us, 
off the quarantine station, when we sighted that per- 
sistent ram Manassas coming up astern in her effort 
to attack the fleet a second time. The work of the 
battery being over. Captain Smith was on the hurri- 
cane deck with me. So deeply was he imbued with 
the spirit of ante-bellum days, when officers might be 
censured for acting on their own initiative without 
waiting for an order from a superior, that he felt 
that he must first ask permission before attacking 



THE BATTLE OF NEW ORLEANS 69 

the ram. He steamed alongside a gun-boat which he 
had mistaken at first sight for the Cayuga, the flag- 
ship of the flag-officer of our division, Captain Bailey. 

**I want permission to run down the ram!" he 
called to the gun-boat. 

Just as we saw our error, while every minute was 
valuable, the Hartford, smoke-blackened from the 
fire which the fire-craft had caused, and looking a 
veritable battle-stained and triumphant veteran of 
war, came steaming by. Farragut was in her rig- 
ging, his face eager with victory in the morning light 
and his eyes snapping. 

"Run down the ram!" he called. 

I shall never forget that glimpse of him. He was 
a very urbane man. But it was plain that if we did 
not run the Manassas down, and promptly, he would 
not think well of us. I never saw Captain Smith 
happier than he was over this opportunity. He was 
a born fighter. 

"Can you turn the ship.?" he asked me. 

"Yes, sir," I answered. 

I did not know whether I could turn her or not, 
but I knew that either I was going to do so or else 
run her aground. Indeed, the Mississippi had not 
yet made a turn in the narrow part of the river, and 
it was a question if she could turn under her own 
steam without assistance. But with so strong an 
incentive at the first trial we succeeded beautifully. 

When Warley saw us coming he did not attempt 



70 GEORGE DEWEY 

to ram. He realized that the momentum of his three 
hundred and eighty-four tons was no match for our 
sixteen hundred and ninety-two tons when we were 
coming straight for him. As the Mississippi bore 
down on him, he dodged our blow and drove the nose 
of the Manassas into the bank. We fired two broad- 
sides that wrecked her. Her crew began crawhng 
ashore over her bows, and Captain Smith immedi- 
ately sent a boat in charge of an officer to board and 
report her condition. He returned with Warley's 
signal-book and diary, to say that the outboard de- 
livery pipes had been cut, and that the Manassas 
was sinking by the stern. 

Captain Smith disliked to give up the idea of 
saving her. But, meanwhile, the gunners in the 
forts had found that the Mississippi was in range, 
and they began to pour in an increasingly heavy fire. 
As one weary gun's crew after another was called to 
their stations, and their welcome of our return to the 
scene of the night's activities grew hotter, it was out 
of the question for the Mississippi to remain a 
stationary target. There was nothing to do but to 
send the boat back in a hurry to set the Manassas on 
fire, and for the Mississippi to join the fleet at the 
quarantine station. 

A little later the weight of the water flowing into 
the Manassas's stern raised her bow so that she 
floated free and drifted down the stream. As she 
appeared around the bend the mortar flotilla, which 



THE BATTLE OF NEW ORLEANS 71 

was not yet entirely certain of the result of the 
night's work, had a few moments akin to panic, and 
some of the unprotected auxiliaries of the fleet made 
ready for flight. When her condition was recog- 
nized an efi^ort was made to secure her, but before 
anything could be accomplished she exploded and 
sank. 

The Mississippi, proceeding upstream, found the 
fleet anchored seven miles above the forts at quar- 
antine, and, as we steamed among the vessels, all 
the crews broke into hearty cheers for us over the 
news that we had brought. It was then that we 
saw our Varuna, a screw corvette of thirteen hun- 
dred tons, sunk to her top-gallant forecastle. But 
she was the fleet's only loss. She had been the sec- 
ond ship in line astern of the Mississippi in the first 
division. Being very speedy she had gone ahead of 
us, passing the forts in less than fifteen minutes, and 
found herself in the van of the whole fleet, engaging 
the Confederate River Defence Squadron. For a 
while she was without support. She fought with a 
gallantry worthy of her impetuosity, until she was 
finally rammed by the Stonewall Jackson, while the 
Cayuga and the Oneida coming up finished the work 
which she had begun by utterly routing the enemy. 
We saw its results in the burning wrecks of the De- 
fence Squadron along the banks of the river. A 
broadside of canister had decided part of a Confed- 
erate regiment in camp along the levee to surrender. 



72 GEORGE DEWEY 

From the time that the two red Ughts had given the 
signal from the flag-ship to get under way until we 
were at quarantine only five hours had elapsed. 

The fleet steamed from the quarantine station to 
a point about fifteen miles below New Orleans, where 
it anchored for the night. Weary as we were, there 
was very little sleep for any one, as fire-rafts and 
burning ships were drifting past us all night. 

So far as we knew, the rest of the journey up to 
New Orleans would be without obstacles and in the 
nature of a parade. The next morning we were 
under way early, with everybody eager for a first 
sight of the city whose location we knew by the smoke 
rising from the Confederate storehouses and ship- 
ping which had been set on fire. Our purser, an 
elderly man whose place in battle was below looking 
after the wounded, was standing beside me on the 
hurricane deck, when suddenly batteries opened fire 
from both banks of the river at the ships ahead. 

*'0h, that rash man Farragut!" he exclaimed. 
''Here we are at it again!" 

But the opposition from the batteries Chalmette 
and McGehee was not formidable. Breaches for four- 
teen guns had been made in the levee walls, which 
was to become a favorite method of expeditiously 
emplacing a battery for a few salvos at a passing 
ship in the Mississippi River campaign. We suf- 
fered little damage ourselves, while we smothered 
Chalmette and McGehee with our broadsides. Soon 



THE BATTLE OF NEW ORLEANS 73 

we were abreast of the panic-stricken city, where we 
found that the Confederates had destroyed every- 
thing which they thought would be of miUtary assist- 
ance to us, including the formidable iron-clad Missis- 
sippi, which was on the ways. Our guns not only 
commanded the streets, but also the narrow strip of 
land which was the city's only outlet except through 
the swamps. 

The taking of New Orleans was the sensational 
achievement of the war thus far. With the flash of 
the splendid news through the North, Farragut be- 
came the hero of the hour. Succeeding victories 
could only brighten the fame that he had won. If 
he had not been a conspicuous captain before the 
war, probably it was because he had not the gift 
of self-advertisement which often wins attention in 
time of peace. 

How many bubble reputations of that sort were 
burst in the first stages of the Civil War! But 
happily Mr. Fox knew Farragut professionally, and 
therefore his merits, and he was given important 
work to do immediately. Under another com- 
mander the story of New Orleans might have been 
difi^erent. Success always makes success seem easy. 
Many a commander could have found excuses for 
not trying to run the forts or for delay, which would 
have meant that both of the new Confederate iron- 
clads would have been ready for battle when the 
passage was finally made. Like Grant, Farragut 



74 GEORGE DEWEY 

always went ahead. Instead of worrying about the 
strength of the enemy, he made the enemy worry 
about his own strength. 

The Confederates had felt that New Orleans was 
secure. It did not seem to them that Yankee enter- 
prise would be equal to a stroke over-sea at such a 
distance from our Northern ports. Surrounded by 
low land, the most populous city of the Confederacy 
was protected from land attack; but not from occu- 
pation by troops under escort of a naval force mak- 
ing a dash up the river. 

As soon as it was evident that New Orleans was 
ours for the occupation, Farragut sent the Mississippi 
and the Iroquois back down the river to reinforce 
the force which he had left at quarantine. Neither 
the forts nor the iron-clad Louisiana had yet surren- 
dered. But the position of both was untenable. 
We were in their rear and they were effectually cut 
off from the rest of the Confederacy. Indeed, a 
part of the weary garrison of the forts practically 
mutinied against holding out any further. 

On the 28th the final terms of surrender were 
made, through Porter, in command of the mortar 
flotilla below the forts, which had not, of course, fol- 
lowed the fleet. I had the pleasure of stretching my 
legs ashore and of inspecting the results of the mor- 
tar fire on the forts. I was not deeply impressed by 
the damage that had been done. The shells had cut 
the levee bank in places and seepage had filled the 



THE BATTLE OF NEW ORLEANS 75 

bottom of the forts with mud. When a shell sank 
in this it made a great splutter without much de- 
structive effect. Yet there is no doubt of the moral 
value of the mortar fire in assisting the passage of 
the fleet. 

Among the Confederate ships was the McRae, 
which had been mercilessly engaged by the Iroquois. 
Her casualties in the exchange of broadsides at close 
quarters had been very heavy. Among the mortally 
wounded was her commander, Thomas B. Huger, 
whose case parallels that of Warley, of the Manassas. 
His last service in the United States Navy had been in 
the ship which he unsuccessfully engaged. Charles 
W. Read succeeded to the command of the McRae. 

Read had been appointed to Annapolis from 
Mississippi, and was at the Naval Academy part of 
the time that I was, being in the class of i860. 
Now, I met him under circumstances that could 
appeal only to the chivalry of the victorious side. 

"Savey" Read, as he was known to his fellow- 
midshipmen, came on board the Mississippi to get 
permission to take his dying captain and the other 
wounded of the McRae to New Orleans. Later dur- 
ing the war he captured one of our vessels, and set 
forth on a career up and down our coast worthy of 
the days of Drake. Whenever he took a vessel that 
he liked better than the one with which he made the 
capture, he would transfer his flag to her. Appear- 
ing suddenly in the harbor of Portland, Maine, which 



^e GEORGE DEWEY 

was about the last place in which any one would have 
expected to see him, he was able to cut out one of 
our revenue-cutters, but was taken before he could 
get away with his prize. 

As a prisoner of war he had to be quiet for a 
while; but eventually he was exchanged. Just be- 
fore the close of the war he reappeared on the Red 
River. There he loaded the ram JVehh with cotton 
and succeeded in passing our ships at New Orleans; 
but about fifty miles below the city he met the Rich- 
mond. Though it seems possible that he might have 
got by her, he ran the Wehh ashore and set her on 
fire. He was on his way to Havana, and if he had 
arrived there with his cargo, such was the high price 
of cotton at the time, he would have made a small 
fortune with which to make a fresh start in life. I 
understand that he closed his career as a pilot of the 
Southwest Pass in the Mississippi delta. 



CHAPTER VI 
IN NEW ORLEANS 

We were invaders and in our own land. I was 
to have plenty of time in which to appreciate the 
bitterness toward the Northerner on the part of the 
people of a Southern city which was noted for its 
hospitality to strangers. For the Mississippi was 
stationed off New Orleans as a guard-ship for nearly 
a year. She was thought to be of too heavy draught 
to proceed up the river with the other ships in the 
spring of 1862, when Farragut made his first run past 
Vicksburg. Remaining behind with her was the 
Pensacola. 

Moreover, it was important that some naval 
force should keep the streets under its guns and be 
ready to assist the army. General Benjamin F. But- 
ler's army of occupation was none too numerous to 
look after a population that was doing everything 
possible to hamper it, while no doubt the adult males 
who were still at home — most of them were up the 
river with the Confederate army — would have risen 
at the first opportunity. In fact, they often de- 
clared that they would yet drive the Yankees into 
the river. 

One of the forgings of the Mississippi's paddle- 

77 



78 GEORGE DEWEY 

wheel had been broken. We could not repair it and 
must have a new one to take its place. When we 
sought to have this made we found that the only 
place with facilities was the foundry and ship-works 
that had been constructing the Confederate iron-clads 
Louisiana and Mississippi. The owner positively 
refused to serve a Yankee ship in this fashion. We 
had to admire his loyalty to his cause; but war is 
war and we needed the forging. So General Butler 
was informed of the refusal. He acted with cus- 
tomary promptness by putting the recalcitrant foun- 
dryman under arrest, and was about to send him 
to Fort Jackson, when his wife came on board the 
Mississippi to see Captain Smith. She said that 
her husband's health was very poor, and confinement 
in Fort Jackson, which was in an insalubrious loca- 
tion, must mean his death. He had changed his 
mind and would make the forging now if he were 
released. She had been timid about going to Gen- 
eral Butler — whom New Orleans regarded as a veri- 
table monster — but wouldn't Captain Smith inter- 
cede with the general.? 

Captain Smith said that he had no interest in 
having her husband imprisoned, and he would much 
rather have him making the forging than on his way 
to Fort Jackson. He sent me to see the general, an 
eccentric, resourceful, determined character, hardly 
inclined to suavity, who had about the most thank- 
less task that could fall to a general officer. He was 



IN NEW ORLEANS 79 

in no danger of allowing sentiment to interfere with 
his rigorous sense of duty. He meant to make sure 
that there was no uprising against him and that his 
soldiers were respected. 

I found him in full uniform at a desk, with his 
sword on and two loaded revolvers lying in front of 
him as a precaution against assassination, of which 
he was in some danger from the rougher elements of 
the population. He agreed with the view of Cap- 
tain Smith; and while he was having a note writ- 
ten for the prisoner's release I remember that he 
pointed to a chest in the room and said: 

"That contains all of Judah P. Benjamin's pri- 
vate papers." 

Benjamin was then secretary of state of the 
Confederacy. He afterward became queen's coun- 
sel, with an immense practice as a barrister, in 
England. 

I was able to deliver the note for the foundry- 
man's release just as the boat with him on board, 
bound for Fort Jackson, was casting off from the 
wharf. 

On occasion the general could manifest a good 
deal of acerbity of temper. Some hitches occurred 
between the land and the sea forces, as usually hap- 
pens when the two sister but distinct services, re- 
porting to separate commands, are aiming to work 
in harmony. 

One of the general's cares was sanitation. He 



8o GEORGE DEWEY 

was guarding against an epidemic of yellow-fever 
with a rigid quarantine. The Tennessee^ one of the 
men-of-war, under command of Captain Philip John- 
son, came up the river, and, contrary to the general's 
regulations, ran past quarantine. In fact, the ship 
had been off the yellow-fever-infected port of Gal- 
veston on the blockade, but had never allowed any 
of her crew ashore. And her reason for not stopping 
was a good one. She was leaking badly, and the only 
way that she could stay afloat was by keeping her 
circulating pumps at work. If she stopped her en- 
gines the pumps would stop. When Butler heard 
of this infraction of his rules he sent for Captain 
Johnson, and, despite Johnson's explanation, broke 
into one of those abusive tirades of which he was 
known to be a master. 

*'I have a great mind to put you in the parish 
prison," Butler announced in the presence of a num- 
ber of his officers. 

"Oh, no, you won't," Johnson answered. "And, 
besides, you must not talk to me that way. If your 
own officers will permit it, I won't." 

As a lawyer Butler saw the point and waived 
the argument on this score, but sent word to Com- 
modore Henry W. Morris, of the Pensacola, the 
senior naval officer present, that the regulations 
must be obeyed and the Ten7iessee must return and 
ride out her quarantine. Commodore Morris could 
be as urbane as Farragut. He was agreeable to the 



IN NEW ORLEANS 8i 

general's ultimatum, but he said that inasmuch as 
there had been exchanges of visits between the Ten- 
nessee and the other vessels of the navy lying in the 
river their crews must also have been infected, and 
therefore they would all go to quarantine. This 
would leave the general's force of occupation with- 
out the moral support of the guns of the navy com- 
manding the streets. Though he affected contro- 
versially not to have a very high opinion of the navy, 
he had not so poor an opinion of it that he wanted 
to see us depart. So he allowed the crippled Ten- 
nessee to remain. She did not develop any cases 
of yellow-fever. 

Butler was so extraordinary a character that per- 
haps another anecdote which refers to him may be 
worth repeating. When the Mississippi returned 
down the river after Farragut had anchored his fleet 
off New Orleans, we found a French gun-boat at 
quarantine. She had been cruising along the coast, 
as many foreign gun-boats were doing, looking after 
the interests of their nations and gaining professional 
points about naval warfare which would be of ser- 
vice to their naval staffs at home. The French com- 
mander asked Captain Smith if there were any ob- 
jection to his going to New Orleans, where, of course, 
there were a great many French subjects living. It 
was quite within his international rights that he 
should go, and Captain Smith consented. When 
Butler, who was disembarking his troops and pre- 



82 GEORGE DEWEY 

paring to occupy the city, heard of this, he took a 
contrary view. 

"We don't want the Frenchman around. He 
might make trouble," he said. 

Captain Smith sent me aboard the gun-boat to 
say that General Butler would rather that she waited 
a few days before proceeding up the river. 

"General Butler.? General Butler?" said the 
French commander. "Oh, yes! He is Vavocat- 
general. He says I shall stay? Voila, I will go!" 
So he went, leaving the "lawyer-general" pretty 
angry but helpless. 

Our social life ashore while we were off New 
Orleans was limited mostly to the scowls of the 
people we passed. But there were a few Union 
families where we were welcome. The courage of 
their loyalty in the midst of what seemed to us uni- 
versal disloyalty was very appealing. In most in- 
stances they were families who had recently come 
from the North and had not yet imbibed the senti- 
ments of their surroundings. But the true South- 
ern woman would as soon have invited Satan him- 
self as a Union officer to her house. To the Creoles 
we were loathsome Yankees, and, in turn, we thought 
of them as "rebels." Confederate was a little-used 
word on the Federal side in those days. 

As an example of our own feeling I recall an oc- 
currence during the visit of a British gun-boat, the 
Rinaldo. She was commanded by Commander, 



IN NEW ORLEANS 83 

later Vice-Admlral, Hewett. His sympathies, as 
were the sympathies of so many EngUshmen, were 
with the Confederacy. As New Orleans was now 
again in the control of the United States, there was 
nothing to prevent his presence there. It was merely 
a visit to the port of a country with which England 
was at peace. He was popular with the New Or- 
leans people, and went about a great deal in creole 
society, and, in return, gave entertainments on board 
the RinaldOf at which the Confederate cause was ac- 
claimed, and to which none of the Federal officers 
were invited. This was somewhat exasperating to 
the Federals. One day when there was a party on 
board the Rinaldo the band began to play the " Bon- 
nie Blue Flag," which was a Confederate air. Cap- 
tain Smith sent for me at once and told me to go 
on board the Rinaldo and tell Hewett that that air 
was not permitted in New Orleans. Hewett was 
pretty angry when he received the captain's mes- 
sage, but he had to recognize that this time we were 
in the right. The air was not played on board the 
Rinaldo again. 

Later Hewett put his sympathy for the Con- 
federate cause into action. Though an officer of 
the British navy, he became commander of one of 
the blockade-runners which were fitted out in Eng- 
land. When our government privately sent word, 
as I understand that it did, that any British naval 
officers who were taken serving on a blockade-runner 



84 GEORGE DEWEY 

would be returned to the British government In 
double irons Hewett resigned his command. Many- 
years afterward, in 1886, I happened to meet him 
in the United Service Club, in London. We had a 
pleasant conversation without once alluding to the 
time when I had told him that he must revise his 
musical programme. 

Being on board a man-of-war off New Orleans 
through the summer was like being in a floating 
oven. It was out of the question to sleep in our 
cabins. We slept on deck. I do not suppose that 
the character of the mosquitoes on the Mississippi 
has changed with the passage of time. There was a 
big kind popularly called "gallinippers," which 
seemed to find shoe-leather an effective means of 
sharpening their proboscides before they reached 
the vulnerable part of your ankle. 

Our existence was pretty monotonous for naval 
officers in the midst of the great war. We envied 
the men on the other ships on the blockade or up 
the river with Farragut. They were at least on the 
move, though they saw little fighting. But we had 
one compensation. While the health of the officers 
and crews up the river had been bad, we had extem- 
porized a distilling-plant on board the Mississippi 
which gave us pure water to drink, and our health 
had been excellent. 



CHAPTER VII 
THE BATTLE OF PORT HUDSON 

The passage of Forts Jackson and St. Philip had 
been lively enough for the fleet, but that of running 
the batteries of Port Hudson was to prove a far more 
serious undertaking. I have often said that in this 
action I lived about five years in one hour. 

At the beginning of the spring of 1863 Grant's and 
Sherman's armies were pressing toward Vicksburg. 
The farther that the Confederates fell back the more 
concentrated became their forces and the more des- 
perate their resistance. After Farragut had returned 
down the river in the fall they had become awakened 
to the weakness of the river's defences and the neces- 
sity of keeping open communications with the rich 
granary to the west of the Mississippi in northern 
Louisiana, Arkansas, and Texas. 

Their natural strongholds were Vicksburg and 
Port Hudson, and these they fortified with all the 
guns that could possibly be spared from other points. 
They had not the facilities that the North had for 
making artillery. Otherwise, by the plentiful distri- 
bution of batteries on the banks of the river where 
it was narrow and the current swift, the problem 
for the Union fleet would have been much worse 

8s 



86 GEORGE DEWEY 

than it was. Efforts at blockade with single de- 
tached vessels had failed, owing to the activity of 
improvised rams and gun-boats which the Confed- 
erates kept up the tributaries. Farragut's object in 
trying to take the fleet above Port Hudson was to 
shut Vicksburg off from supplies on the river side, 
while the army was shutting it off on the land 
side. 

He needed every available ship for his purpose; 
and he now concluded that the Mississippi was not of 
too heavy draught to navigate in the river above 
New Orleans. She was never meant for such work, 
but we were delighted over the opportunity for any 
kind of action after the dreary monotony of survey- 
ing from our deck the wharves of New Orleans. As 
executive officer in charge of the general details of the 
ship, I had aimed to make the best of the recess and 
overcome the handicap of my youth by my zeal in 
training the crew of three hundred men, for whom 
I was responsible to the captain in the same way 
that the manager of a corporation is responsible to 
its president and board of directors. We had devel- 
oped the discipline of a regular force, and certainly, 
if drill of the guns' crews counted for anything, we 
should be correspondingly efiicient in battle. 

On March 14, 1863, we had anchored off Profit's 
Island, which is seven miles below Port Hudson, a 
little town that went into history because it hap- 
pened to mark a sharp bend in the river running 



THE BATTLE OF PORT HUDSON 87 

west-southwest for a distance of a mile or more. 
Beginning at the bend was a Hne of bluffs on the 
east bank, varying from eighty to a hundred feet in 
height. On the opposite bank there was a danger- 
ous shoal-point. On the bluffs were heavy guns that 
could bear the length of the bend and cover this 
point. They had a plunging fire on us, while we 
had to fire upward at them. There were also guns 
at the base of the bluffs. The time chosen for the 
passage was night, again much against the predilec- 
tions of Captain Smith. 

First and last, the old Mississippi, on account of 
her side-wheels, had been in a class by herself in Far- 
ragut's fleet. Now the other big ships, the Hart- 
ford, the Monongahela, and the Richmond, each were 
to have a gun-boat made fast to the port side, which 
was the opposite side from the batteries. The ob- 
ject of this pairing was the assistance of the gun- 
boat in helping her heavy-draught companion off 
the bottom if she ran aground. Thus Farragut 
applied the principle of the twin screws' facility in 
making a short turn by backing with one screw and 
going ahead with the other. But the Mississippi, 
being a side-wheeler, had to make the passage with- 
out a consort. We had an experienced pilot at our 
service, as had every ship. He was in one of the 
cutters under the guns on the port side, where he 
would at the same time be safe — for his safety was 
most important — and near enough to call his di- 



88 GEORGE DEWEY 

rections to the man at the wheel. Thus a river 
pilot had become a factor in fighting a ship which 
had been built to fight in the open sea with plenty 
of room for manoeuvring. 

Starting at lo p. m., after the Hartford, which 
led, came the Monongahela and then the Richmond^ 
with the Mississippi bringing up the rear. Pos- 
sibly Farragut realized that the Mississippi would 
be the most likely of the four to run aground, and 
therefore assigned her to a position where she would 
not get in the way of any following ship if she did 
run aground. The Hartford was already past the 
first of the batteries before the enemy threw up a 
rocket as a signal that she was seen, and the whole 
crest of the bluff broke into flashes. Piles of cord- 
wood soaked with pitch were lighted on the shore 
opposite the batteries in order to outline the ships 
to the Confederate gunners. One of my Washing- 
ton friends, Chief-Justice White, was a boyish aide 
to the commanding general of the Port Hudson de- 
fences. He tells me that the Confederates got the 
better of us that night, and I must say that I have 
to agree with him. 

The air was heavy and misty. Almost imme- 
diately after we were engaged, a pall of smoke set- 
tled over the river and hung there, thickening with 
the progress of the cannonading. This was more 
dangerous than the enemy's fire, which was pound- 
ing us with good effect, while we could see nothing 



THE BATTLE OF PORT HUDSON 89 

but the flashes of their guns as a target. The Hart- 
ford, however, had good luck as well as advantage 
of position. She was at least pushing ahead of her 
own smoke, while every other ship was taking the 
smoke of those in front of her. The Mississippi 
had the smoke of all three. 

At the bend, the current caught the Hartford 
and swept her around with her head toward the bat- 
teries, her stem touching ground. But the Alha- 
iross, her gun-boat consort, helped her off. Then, 
applying the twin-screw method, with the Hartford 
going ahead strong with her engines while the Jlba- 
tross backed, the Hartford got her head pointed up- 
stream again and steamed out of the range of the 
batteries with a loss of only one killed and two 
wounded. The Confederate gunners had not de- 
pressed their guns enough for the Hartford, but they 
did not make this error as the other ships came in 
range. 

When the Richmond, the second ship in line, was 
in front of the last battery, a shot tore into her en- 
gine-room. Such was its chance effect that it t\\'isted 
the safety-valve lever, displacing the weight and 
quickly filling the engine-room, fire-room, and berth 
deck with steam. In short order the steam pressure 
fell so low that she could not go ahead under her 
own motive power. The Genesee, her gun-boat, was 
not able with her own power to make any headway 
for the two vessels against the strong current. There 



90 GEORGE DEWEY 

was nothing to do but for the pair to make an expe- 
ditious retreat downstream to safety. 

The Richmond's gunners, working in furious haste, 
intent on deHvering the heaviest possible fire, did 
not know that their ship had turned around. There- 
fore they were firing toward the bank opposite that 
from the batteries. Mistaking the flashes of the 
Mississippi s guns for the flashes of the enemy's, 
they fired at her. On our part we did not know in 
the obscurity of the smoke and darkness that our 
ships had been disabled. The Richmond's casual- 
ties included her executive officer, Lieutenant A. 
Boyd Cummings, who was mortally wounded. 

As the Monongahela came along she found her- 
self in the range of musketry from the low bank on 
the port side, which was silenced by her gun-boat, 
the Kineo. But the Kineo received a shot which 
jammed her rudder-post and rendered the rudder 
useless. As a result the Monongahela had to do all 
the steering. She ran aground, and the Kineo, car- 
ried on by her momentum as the Monongahela sud- 
denly stopped, tore away all of her fasts by which she 
was bound to the Monongahela except one. Then 
the Kineo got a hawser to the Monongahela, and, 
laboring desperately, under fire, succeeded after 
twenty-five minutes' effort in getting the Monon- 
gahela free of the bottom. 

Meanwhile, Captain McKinistry, of the Monon- 
gahela, had had the bridge shot away from under 



THE BATTLE OF PORT HUDSON 91 

his feet, and had received such a fall in consequence 
that he was incapacitated. Lieutenant-Commander 
N. W. Thomas took command in his place. The 
Kineo drifted on downstream, while the Mononga- 
hela proceeded on her way until a heated crank-pin 
stopped her engines, when she had to drift back 
downstream under the fire of the batteries. She 
sustained a heavy loss in killed and wounded. 

I refer to the experiences of the three ships which 
had preceded the Mississippi in order to show the 
hazardous nature of Farragut's undertaking. His 
flag-ship, the Hartford, and her consort, the gun-boat 
Albatross, were all of his command which he had 
with him the next morning, and it was many weeks 
before any of the other ships could join him. 

The Mississippi, bringing up the rear, was soon 
enveloped in the pall of smoke. We went by the 
Monongahela when she was aground without, so far 
as I know, either seeing or being seen by her. Both 
Captain Smith and myself felt that our destiny 
that night was in the hands of the pilot. There 
was nothing to do but to fire back at the flashes on 
the bluffs and trust to his expert knowledge. It was 
a new experience for him, guiding a heavy-draught 
ocean-going ship in the midst of battle smoke, with 
the shells shrieking in his ears. By the time that 
the Mississippi came within range of the batteries 
they were making excellent practice. Our mortar 
flotilla posted below the bend was adding to the up- 



92 GEORGE DEWEY 

roar. When there was a cry of "Torpedoes!" it 
might have been alarming had we not seen that 
bombs striking close to the ship had splashed the 
water upon the deck. None actually struck us. 
Some one else shouted, "They're firing chain-shot 
at us!" an error of observation due to the sight of 
two bombs which passed by in company, their lighted 
fuses giving the effect of being part of the same pro- 
jectile. 

We were going very slowly, feeling our way as 
we approached the shoal point. Finally, when the 
pilot thought that we were past it, he called out: 
"Starboard the helm! Full speed ahead!" As it 
turned out, we were anything but past the point. 
We starboarded the helm straight into it and struck 
just as we developed a powerful momentum. We 
were hard aground and listing, and backed with all 
the capacity of the engines immediately. In order 
to bring the ship on an even keel, we ran in the port 
battery, which, as it faced away from the bluffs, was 
not engaged. Every precaution to meet the emer- 
gency was taken promptly; and there was remark- 
ably little confusion, thanks to the long drills which 
we had had off New Orleans, and to the fact that 
all but a few of the crew had already been under fire 
in passing Forts Jackson and St. Philip. 

But no amount of training could altogether pre- 
pare men for such a situation as we were in. With 
our own guns barking, and the engines pounding. 



THE BATTLE OF PORT HUDSON 93 

and the paddle-wheels making more noise than usual, 
because we were aground, it was difficult to make 
commands heard. In half an hour the engines never 
budged us, while steadfastly and even unconcernedly 
the engine-room force stuck to their duties. We 
were being more frequently hit; the toll of our dead 
and wounded was increasing. Naturally, too, gun- 
ners of the enemy, who could see the ship outlined 
by the bonfires on the bank on the opposite side of 
us from the batteries, had not failed to note that 
we were aground. The advantages of training on a 
stationary target allowed them to make the most of 
our distress, while the flashes of our own guns and 
the bursting of the enemy's shells only made the 
intervals of darkness the more baffling to the eyes. 
I remember hunting about the deck for Captain 
Smith and finding him lighting another cigar with 
a flint quite as coolly as if he were doing it when 
we lay anchored off New Orleans. 

"Well, it doesn't look as if we could get her off," 
he said. 

"No, it does not!" I had to tell him. 

Then came the report that we were on fire for- 
ward in the store-room. Investigation proved that 
this was true. The store-room was filled with all 
sorts of inflammable material and was below the 
water-line, supposedly out of reach of any shot. 

It was not until forty years afterward that I 
learned how the fire had started, and this from a 



94 GEORGE DEWEY 

gentleman whom I met at Palm Beach, Florida. He 
had served in what was called the "hot-shot" bat- 
tery. This battery had a furnace in which they 
heated their round shot red-hot before firing them. 
When I asked him how they kept the shot from 
igniting the powder, he said: "We put wads of wet 
hay or hemp between the shot and the powder." 
Our bow in grounding had risen so that the store- 
room was above the water-line, and one of these hot 
shot having a plunging trajectory had entered. While 
we were fighting the fire in the store-room, Captain 
Smith had given the order to throw the guns of the 
port battery overboard in the hope that this would 
lighten the ship enough to float her. But the order 
was never carried out. He had to face the heart- 
breaking fact, to any captain of his indomitable 
courage, of giving up his ship. He had opposed 
fighting in the night and in the night he had come 
to grief. 

"Can we save the crew?" he asked me. 

"Yes, sir!" I told him. 

But there was no time to lose. Delay only meant 
still more wounded to move, with the danger of the 
fire in the store-room reaching the magazine before 
they were away. Not once had our starboard bat- 
tery ceased firing. The gunners had kept to their 
work as if they were sure of victory, gaps caused by 
casualties among the guns' crews being filled in a 
fashion that was a credit to our morale; for it is in 



THE BATTLE OF PORT HUDSON 95 

such a crisis as this that you may know whether all 
your labor in organization and drills has had a vital 
or a superficial effect. 

And the battery must continue to fire up to the 
very minute of abandoning the ship, the gunners 
being the last of the enlisted men to go. Down on 
the spar-deck I found everybody full of fight. I re- 
member as I passed along seeing Ensign Barker, now 
Rear-Admiral Albert S. Barker (retired), sighting a 
gun. To show what a small detail, even in a time 
of such tension as that was, may impress itself on 
the mind, I recollect that Barker was wearing eye- 
glasses. I had never seen him with them on before. 

"What are we leaving her for.?" Barker asked. 
He was thinking only of his part, without knowing 
that there was a fire forward. When I explained, 
he comprehended the situation. It was Barker who 
brought the Oregon out to Manila after the Spanish 
War and who took over the command of the Asiatic 
station on my departure for home. 

The three boats on the starboard side toward 
the enemy's batteries had all been smashed by shells. 
The three on the port side were still seaworthy. 

We got all of the wounded in the first boat, and 
started that down the river, with directions to go 
on board one of our ships. The second and the 
third, which had some of the slightly wounded, as 
well as members of the crew who were unhurt, were 
told to make a landing near by on the bank and to 



96 GEORGE DEWEY 

send the boats back immediately. They were slow 
in returning. As soon as they were against the ship's 
side the crew began crowding and the officers had 
difficulty in keeping order. For the moment the 
bonds of discipline had been broken. The men were 
just human beings obeying the law of self-preserva- 
tion. 

I apprehended the reason why the boats had 
been slow in returning. There was disinclination 
on the part of the oarsmen who had reached safety 
to make the trip back. What if the next time the 
boats did not return at all.? They were our only 
hope of safety. To swim in that swift river-current 
was impossible. To expect rescue in the midst of 
battle, when no one could be signalled in the dark- 
ness and pandemonium, was out of the question. 
It would be a choice of drowning or of burning for 
those who were caught on board the Mississippi. 

I determined to make sure of the boats' return, 
and in the impulse, just as they were going to push 
off, I swung myself down by the boat-falls into one 
of the boats. Not until we were free of the ship did 
I have a second thought in realization of what I had 
done. I had left my ship in distress, when it is the 
rule that the last man to leave her should be the 
captain, and I as executive officer should be next to 
the last. 

That was the most anxious moment of my career. 
What if a shot should sink the boat? What if a 



THE BATTLE OF PORT HUDSON 97 

rifle bullet should get me ? All the world would say 
that I had been guilty of about as craven an act as 
can be placed at the door of any officer. This would 
not be pleasant reading for my father up in Vermont. 
He would no longer think that I had done the "rest'* 
reasonably well. If the ship should blow up while I 
was away and I should appear on the reports as 
saved, probably people would smile over my expla- 
nation. 

We were under fire all the way to the shore, but 
nobody was hit. As we landed on the beach I said 
to the men in the boats: 

"Now, all of you except four get to cover behind 
the levee. Those four will stay with me to go off 
to the ship." 

They obeyed one part of my command with 
great alacrity. That is, all but one scrambled over 
the levee in a free-for-all rush. The one who re- 
mained standing was a big negro, the ship's cook. 
He evidently understood that I meant him to be 
one of the four. 

"I'm ready to go with you, sir!" he said. And 
he was perfectly calm about it. 

Each of the others had thought that the order 
was not personal. But when I called out, shaming 
them, in the name of their race, for allowing a negro 
to be the only one who was willing to return to save 
his shipmates, I did not lack volunteers. 

Then in the dim light I discerned one man stand- 



98 GEORGE DEWEY 

ing by the other boat, which had landed some dis- 
tance up the beach. 

I called: 

"Who is that standing by the cutter?" 

The answer came: *'It is I, sir, Chase" (one of 
the acting masters). 

"Why don't you go off to the ship and get the 
rest of the officers and men?" I asked. 

"I can't get the men to man the boat!" he said. 

When I called out asking if they meant to desert 
their shipmates there was no reply. Then I told 
Chase to use his revolver and make them go, which 
he did. It is my firm belief that neither one of the 
boats would have ever returned to the ship if I had 
not gone ashore in one of them. 

I was certainly as relieved to reach the ship as 
the men had been to reach shore. When I say that 
I lived five years in an hour, I should include about 
four and a half of the years in the few minutes that 
I was absent with the boats. 

As soon as I was on deck Captain Smith came to 
me and said: 

"I have been looking all over for you. I didn't 
know but that you had been killed." 

I explained hastily, and added that we had two 
empty boats alongside, which we might not have 
had except for my indiscretion. 

"We must make sure that none is left aboard 
alive," said the captain. 



THE BATTLE OF PORT HUDSON 99 

Then we began a search whose harrowing mem- 
ory will never fade from my mind. We went up 
and down the decks, examining prostrate figures to 
make sure that no spark of life remained in them, 
haste impelling us in the grim task on the one hand, 
and, on the other, the fear that some poor fellow 
who was still unconscious might know the horror of 
seeing the flames creep up on him as he lay power- 
less to move. Meanwhile, we kept calling aloud in 
the darkness that this was the last chance to escape. 
As a result of the thorough search, we found one 
youngster, little more than a boy, who was so faint 
that he could scarcely speak. We pulled him out 
from under the body of a dead man, in the midst 
of a group of dead who had been killed by the 
bursting of a shell. 

The next step was to make certain that the ship 
should not fall into the hands of the enemy. Cap- 
tain Smith gave orders to fire the ship in two places 
in order to make absolutely sure of her destruction. 
This was our last service to that old vessel which 
had known so many cruises, and it was performed 
while the batteries on the bluff were continuing to 
improve their practice. 

With Ensign O. A. Batcheller I went below to 
start a blaze in the wardroom, which is both the 
officers' sitting-room and mess-room and, in a sense, 
their home afloat, while the rest of the ship is their 
shop. I had a lantern with me, I remember, and 



loo GEORGE DEWEY 

when I got below I looked around at the bare oak 
table and chairs, wondering what there was that I 
could ignite. I did not want to delay the boat, and, 
under the circumstances, as long as we had to go, 
we did not care to remain in that inferno of shell- 
fire any longer than necessary. I ran into my state- 
room, and pulling the mattress off the berth hurried 
back with it to the wardroom. Then I ripped it open 
and put it under the dining-table. 

When I had piled the chairs and any other com- 
bustibles around the table, I took the oil lamp out 
of the lantern and plunged it into the mattress, with 
the result that I had a blaze which required imme- 
diate evacuation of the wardroom by Batcheller and 
myself. My mattress was all that I had tried to re- 
move from my state-room. But just as we were go- 
ing Batcheller cried: 'TU save that, anyway!" and 
seized a uniform frock-coat before he ran up the 
ladder ahead of me. 

In the last boat, besides the captain, were one 
of the engineers, Batcheller, myself, and four men. 
I waited on my juniors to precede me, and then the 
captain waited for me, so that he was the last man 
ever to press his foot on the Mississippi s deck. 
This order of our going was carried out as regularly 
in keeping with naval custom as if it had been some 
formal occasion in a peaceful port. 

As soon as we were free of the ship's side the 
powerful current caught us and swung us down- 



THE BATTLE OF PORT HUDSON loi 

stream. At the same time, the fire we had started 
in the wardroom broke through the skyhght in a 
great burst of flame, illuminating the whole after 
part of the ship. It must have revealed our boat 
clearly on the bosom of the river, and it was a signal 
to those on the bluffs along the banks to break into 
that rebel yell which I then heard in full chorus of 
victory for the first and only time in my life. It 
was not pleasant to the ear. The Confederates were 
gloating over what was the most triumphant of 
sights to them and the most distressing of sights to 
us. I remember thinking : " How they must hate us ! " 

Meanwhile, there was no cessation in the fire, 
and our boat was a target for the batteries. Not 
one of the officers and crew, except Ensign Batchel- 
ler, had saved any of his personal belongings. All 
the clothes we had were those in which we were 
clad. Captain Smith had on his sword, and also 
buckled to his belt a pair of fine revolvers. He still 
had a cigar in his mouth, and was as calm as ever. 
But suddenly he unbuckled his belt and threw both 
sword and revolvers overboard. 

"Why did you do that.?" I asked. 

He was a man of few words, who made up his 
mind decisively, and his answers were always prompt. 

"I'm not going to surrender them to any rebel," 
he said. This illustrated very well the strong feel- 
ings of the time, which now, happily, have no inter- 
est for us except in the psychology of history. 



102 GEORGE DEWEY 

"We need not land, but go to one of our ships 
downstream," I answered. 

At all events, I concluded to keep my sword. 
Every one in the boat, except Captain Smith and 
myself, was at the oars, rowing as energetically as 
if we were in a race. I had the tiller. We were 
moving so rapidly that we were not hit, and when 
we were safe around the bend and in sight of the 
Richmond of our fleet, which we were to board in 
safety, it was evident that the captain had been a 
little precipitate. A few days afterward, when he 
was still without a sword. Captain Smith gave my 
sword a glance and remarked : 

"You would not have had that if you had fol- 
lowed your captain's example." 

This was said without a smile, very much in the 
manner of a bishop. The captain would have made 
a most dignified bishop and of the church militant. 

I recollect, too, Ensign Batcheller holding up the 
uniform coat he had saved, after we had reached 
the Richmond, as a token of the advantage he had 
over the rest of us. Ensign E. M. Shepard exam- 
ined the coat and said: 

"Thanks, very much, Batcheller, but that's my 
coat!" 

So it was. 

Besides setting her on fire in two places, as an 
additional precaution before abandoning her, we had 
cut the Mississippi s o\\xho3.i(l dtXwtiy pipes. Thus 



THE BATTLE OF PORT HUDSON 103 

she filled with water astern, just as the wreck of the 
ram Manassas had In the battle of New Orleans, and 
with the same result. Her bow was lifted sufficiently 
for her to float free of the bottom, and she swung 
around with the current. Her port guns were loaded, 
and now, as they faced the Confederate batteries, 
the heat reached the primers and she came down- 
stream, a dying ship manned by dead men, firing 
on the enemy; and some of the shots, I am told, 
took effect. 

As she drifted toward us a mass of flame, she had 
the whole river to herself, lighting its breadth and 
throwing the banks of the levee in relief. The Rich- 
mond slipped her chain in order to make sure of 
not being run down. Captain Smith and his officers 
were standing on the deck of the Richmond watch- 
ing her, while I, with that rebel yell of triumph still 
echoing in my ears, was thinking of the splendid 
defiance of the last shots in her guns being sent at 
the enemy. 

"She goes out magnificently, anyway!" I said to 
the captain, glad to find some compensating thought 
for our disaster in a moment when all of us were 
overwrought by what we had been through. 

"I don't think so!" he returned sharply. 

I saw that he had misunderstood the idea that 
led to my remark. I shall never forget the look on 
his face as he saw his ship of which he had been 
so proud drifting to her doom. Farther downstream 



I04 GEORGE DEWEY 

she went aground and soon after exploded. Such 
was the end of that brave, sturdily built old side- 
wheeler. 

It is hard to say whether or not Port Hudson 
can be considered as a set-back for the navy. Far- 
ragut himself got through. The affair was in keep- 
ing with his character. Though the three other 
ships failed, the navy had appeared before the coun- 
try as ready to take any risk. We had made amends 
for the disaster at Galveston some two months pre- 
viously, when the Westfield had been destroyed and 
the Harriet Lane captured, which had been unfort- 
unate in its effect. Considering the state of mind 
of the country, the need was for some deed of daring 
aggressiveness. However, the Navy Department de- 
termined to hold in its leonine old fighter a little, 
and he was told not to risk his ships where it could 
possibly be avoided. 

In speaking of the loss of the Mississippi^ Farra- 
gut said that he was sorry to lose a good vessel and 
so many brave men, but that you could not make 
an omelet without breaking eggs. When Captain 
Smith, who was as serious as Cromwell and withal 
extremely sensitive, heard this remark, he appeared 
hurt; for he said, in his sober fashion: "He calls 
us an omelet!" Far from any criticism ever being 
passed in any quarter on the abandonment of the 
Mississippi, the captain had letters of praise for his 
conduct from both Mr. Welles and Mr. Fox. "The 



THE BATTLE OF PORT HUDSON 105 

noble ship has gone," wrote Mr. Fox, '*but the navy 
and the country have gained an example. However, 
it was to be expected of him who in this war has done 
all things well." 

In that disaster, as in every action, I myself 
had gained experience in the midst of danger and 
confusion when I was still young enough to profit 
by the lesson. No word of commendation I have 
received is more precious to me than that of Cap- 
tain Smith's report, in which he said: 

"I consider that I should be neglecting a most 
important duty should I omit to mention the cool- 
ness of my executive officer, Mr. George Dewey, and 
the steady, fearless, and gallant manner in which 
the officers and men of the Mississippi defended 
her, and the orderly and quiet manner in which she 
was abandoned." 



CHAPTER VIII 
PRIZE COMMISSIONER 

After the battle of Port Hudson I had a radical 
change of occupation and scene. My new duties 
called for the abilities of a judge and a merchant 
rather than those associated with my profession. 
As prize commissioner at New Orleans I had to 
adjudicate controversies concerning cargo captured 
on the blockade, and, when I had declared it legiti- 
mate prize, to sell it for the government. As most 
of the contraband was cotton, I became quite an 
expert in the fluctuations of the cotton market. 

The auctioneer who acted as salesman for me, 
though born in Kentucky, was a pronounced Union 
man. When he first came to New Orleans he had 
sold a great many negroes as a matter of course in 
his business. Though this was not exactly agree- 
able work, he had not developed any keen sensitive- 
ness about it. Slavery was an accepted institution 
to which everybody had become accustomed. How- 
ever, a single revolting and illuminating experience 
made him an abolitionist. 

One day he was asked to go to a hotel to look 
at some human "property" with a view to its sale 

to the highest bidder. The man who owned the 

1 06 



PRIZE COMMISSIONER 107 

"property" took him Into a room where three girls 
were seated sewing. The girls, being octoroons and 
having the peculiarly white complexion of many oc- 
toroons, were, as the auctioneer declared, whiter 
than his own daughter. 

"I told that fellow that he would have to get 
somebody else to sell those girls," he said. 

He made up his mind that an institution that 
permitted such a thing ought to be wiped out. He 
was not against the South, but against slavery. 

As I lived on shore rather than on shipboard, I 
came to see a great deal more of New Orleans than 
I had while I was serving on a ship alongside the 
wharves. The life of the city had now adapted itself 
to the Union occupation. Business went on quite 
as usual. Except for the absence of many of the 
men in the Confederate army, you would hardly 
have realized that a state of war existed. 

With the appetite of youth, after navy rations 
and that stiff fight at Port Hudson, I was able to 
do justice to New Orleans cookery, which I found 
was worthy of its reputation. Never before had I 
known such good food and so cheap. We had not 
only the pompano and other delicious fish, but also 
that delectable upland plover, the "papabote." 

My service as Prize Commissioner was relatively 
brief. Summer found me back on the river as exec- 
utive officer of the sloop Monongahela, which was 
stationed below Port Hudson, under my old cap- 



io8 GEORGE DEWEY 

tain, Melancthon Smith, for a short time until he was 
ordered north, when Captain Abner Read took com- 
mand. As the Hartford was above Port Hudson, 
Farragut made the Monongahela his flag-ship when 
he was looking after operations on the lower reaches 
of the river. He lived mostly on deck and natu- 
rally at such close quarters that I saw a great deal 
of him. 

He was not given to "paper work" or red tape, 
by which I mean lengthy written detail in his con- 
duct of operations. I remember the simplicity of 
his methods particularly in contrast with those of 
another admiral with less responsibility, who could 
not get along without a force of clerks. There was 
a saying that his principal place for filing papers 
was his own coat-pocket. His was the supreme gift 
of directness and simplicity in great affairs, so valu- 
able in time of war. Generally he wrote his orders 
himself, perhaps with his knee or the ship's rail as a 
rest. I recall that one day when he was writing he 
looked up and said: 

"Now, how in the devil do you spell Appalachi- 
cola.^ Some of these educated young fellows from 
Annapolis must know!" 

A man who had such an important command 
could hardly have been more democratic. One night 
I had given orders for a thorough cleaning of the 
ship the next morning. I was awake very early, 
for it was stiflingly hot. Five o'clock came and I 



PRIZE COMMISSIONER 109 

heard no sound of the holy-stones on the deck. So 
I went above to find out why my orders were not 
obeyed, and my frame of mind for the moment was 
entirely that of the disciplinarian. There was no 
activity at all on deck. I looked around for the 
officer of the deck. He was an old New England 
whaler, brown as a buccaneer, who had enlisted for 
the war from the merchant service. I recollect that 
he wore small gold rings in his ears, a custom with 
some of the old-fashioned merchant sailors who had 
travelled the world over. I found him seated up in 
the hammock netting where it was cool, with Far- 
ragut at his side. 

"Why aren't you cleaning ship?" I asked. 

"I think I am to blame," said Farragut, with 
his pleasant smile. "We two veterans have been 
swapping yarns about sailing-ship days." 

The old whaler did not see how he could leave 
Farragut when Farragut wanted to talk, and in- 
wardly, perhaps, he did not fail to enjoy his posi- 
tion as superior to the young executive officer's rep- 
rimands. 

As a rule, no captain or executive officer likes 
having his ship the flag-ship of a commander-in-chief. 
But Farragut was so simple in his manners and so 
free from the exactions due to official rank, that he 
was most welcome, crowded as our quarters were. 
Being a companionable man, he liked company, even 
when he was under fire. I recall a certain afternoon 



no GEORGE DEWEY 

when he announced that he was going in his httle 
steam tender to have a look at the Port Hudson 
batteries. First he asked Captain Thornton A. Jen- 
kins, his chief of staff, if he would not like to come 
along. The captain begged to be excused. Then 
he asked Captain Smith, who also begged to be ex- 
cused. Neither saw any purpose in an interruption 
of his duties to make a trip in the heat in order to 
be shot at. But Farragut was not going alone. He 
clapped me on the shoulder and said: "Come along, 
youngster!" which was equivalent to a command to 
one of my rank. As I went over the side Captain 
Jenkins said to me: 

"Did you ever know a man before who always 
had a bee buzzing in his ear?" 

We went up into the range of the batteries and 
drew their fire. But as we steamed rapidly and in 
a zigzag course we were not hit. Meanwhile Farra- 
gut seemed to be having the best kind of a time. 
No doubt, he got the information that he wanted. 

It was while serving on the Monongahela that 
I had the closest call in my career. We were steam- 
ing up the river, escorting a small gun-boat with am- 
munition for Banks's army. As I have previously 
mentioned, all that a field-battery had to do in order 
to have a little practice against a Union man-of-war 
was to cut embrasures for its guns in the levee 
and let drive. The levee furnished both an excel- 
lent screen and excellent protection. In fact, the 



PRIZE COMMISSIONER in 

gunners used these embrasures with much the effect 
of the modern disappearing gun. They ran the 
muzzle through the opening when they wanted to 
fire and then drew it back out of sight for loading, 
with neither themselves nor the gun at all exposed, 
while our shots would either be buried in the levee 
walls or whistle harmlessly overhead. But a man- 
of-war was a big target, and a single shot striking in 
a vital part might do great damage. 

When a field-battery, hidden in the fashion I 
have described, unexpectedly opened on the Monon- 
gahela at close range in the vicinity of Donelsonville, 
Captain Jenkins, Farragut's chief of staff, who was 
aboard, thought that the only thing to do was to 
get out of range at full speed. This did seem the 
part of wisdom. Certainly our experience proved 
that it was for poor Read. He paid the penalty for 
taking a contrary view. 

" I have never run from any rebel yet," Read de- 
clared, "and I'm not going to run now." 

So he slowed the Monongahela down to engage the 
battery. He and Captain Jenkins and myself were 
standing near each other on the quarter-deck and 
we had fired only a few shots when there was a 
blinding flash in my eyes. I felt the stunning effect 
of the concussion of an exploding shell — which al- 
ways raises the question of whether you will be alive 
or dead the next second. However, I realized that 
I was unhurt, and as the air cleared and I was once 



112 GEORGE DEWEY 

more standing solidly on my feet, with full posses- 
sion of my faculties, I saw Read prostrate on the 
deck, his clothing badly torn and blood pouring from 
several places. Captain Jenkins was also down. It 
was clear that the command of the ship had devolved 
upon me, so I gave the order, "Full speed ahead!" 
The Monongahela, being very fast for a ship of her 
time, was soon out of range of the batteries. 

Captain Read had been mortally wounded and 
died the next day, while Captain Jenkins had been 
wounded slightly, but in a curious way. The shell 
had exploded at a point in the ship's side where 
a rack of cutlasses was located and had hurled frag- 
ments of cutlass in all directions. Although our sta- 
tion on the quarter-deck was some distance from the 
point of explosion, a cutlass blade (about half length) 
had struck Captain Jenkins's leg with such force as 
to knock him down. That nothing worse than a 
bruise resulted was due to the fact that the blade 
struck fairly with its flat surface. Had the edge 
been turned, serious injury would have been inflicted. 

When we examined the spread of the shell by the 
places where the fragments had struck, it was inex- 
plicable how I had ever escaped without a scratch. 
It almost made me believe in luck. For that matter, 
any one who has seen much fighting becomes a sort 
of fatalist. Evidently my time had not yet come. 

With the taking of Vicksburg in July, Port Hud- 
son fell in consequence. At last President Lincoln 



l^Hf 



PRIZE COMMISSIONER 113 

had his wish. The Mississippi ''flowed unvexed to 
the sea.'* There was no longer the need of any- 
large naval force on the river. I was transferred 
to the Brooklyn, Captain Emmons, which had been 
ordered North to report to Rear-Admiral Dahlgren, 
who was in charge of the blockade off Charleston, 
South Carolina. 



CHAPTER IX 
ON THE JAMES RIVER 

After eighteen months of service on sea-going 
ships navigating a river, it was a pleasure to be back 
in a sea-going ship's natural element; and I thor- 
oughly enjoyed our cruise across the Gulf of Mexico 
with our sails spread. Captain Emmons, who had 
his nickname, as every officer of the navy had, was 
known as "Pop." He would never get my name 
right, always calling me "Mr. Dewar." We stopped 
in at Port Royal, and I recall, as we entered the 
harbor, that I was standing between him and the 
pilot when we sighted a vessel coming out. 

"Starboard the helm!" said the pilot. 

"Port the helm!" said Captain Emmons. 

"Steady!" I said. 

Captain Emmons turned on me. 

"What do you mean, Mr. Dewar, by counter- 
manding my orders.^" he demanded. 

"Well, sir, the pilot said starboard and you said 
port, so I wanted to avoid having the helmsman try 
to do both at once," I responded. 

"Steady, then!" returned the captain. It trans- 
pired that this compromise in authority saved us 

from any danger of collision. 

114 



ON THE JAMES RIVER 115 

The prospect of taking part in Dahlgren*s opera- 
tions against Charleston was not altogether inviting 
to the officers of the Brooklyn. Farragut had fought 
his campaign on the lower Mississippi with wooden 
ships of the ante-bellum type and small gun-boats. 
There were some iron-clads on the upper Mississippi, 
but those built for use in harbors where they must 
stand some seaway were all on the Atlantic coast. 
It was out of the question to add armor to the wooden 
ships, as they had not the buoyancy to carry it. At 
Charleston the Confederates had their most power- 
ful batteries. If the Brooklyn engaged them it would 
be pitting wooden sides and smooth-bore guns against 
the latest type of rifled gun. In fact, ours would 
be the only fighting-ship in Dahlgren's command 
that was not armored. 

Upon our arrival at Charleston, while Captain 
Emmons went on board Dahlgren's flag-ship to re- 
port, we had time to look over his vessels and to 
realize how suicidal it would be for us to join in any 
attack on the defences of the harbor. We had an 
example in the monitors, which we saw for the first 
time, of how rapidly both the offensive and the de- 
fensive features of men-of-war had improved under 
the impulse of war conditions. Besides the division 
of monitors with their revolving turrets — modelled 
on that first experiment which had driven the Con- 
federate Merrimac {Virginia) to cover — there was 
also the New Ironsides, that' followed conventional 



ii6 GEORGE DEWEY 

ship construction and had armored sides. The com- 
bination of the two principles, an armored ship with 
revolving turrets, forms the principle of the battle- 
ship of to-day. 

Having been executive officer of one ship that 
had been lost, I did not care to repeat the experi- 
ence. We were all pleased when Captain Emmons 
came off to report that it was not the Brooklyn that 
Dahlgren wanted, but Captain Emmons to serve on 
his staff. So the Brooklyn proceeded to the New 
York Navy-Yard to be overhauled before returning 
to Farragut^s command in the Gulf, where she was 
to participate in the battle of Mobile Bay. Mean- 
while, I had my first holiday from duty since the 
war had begun, which I spent at my home in Ver- 
mont. 

Captain James Alden succeeded Captain Em- 
mons in command of the Brooklyn and he wanted 
me to go with him as executive officer; so did Far- 
ragut. But strong objections on account of my 
youth were made to the Navy Department on be- 
half of officers who were my seniors and held less 
important assignments. As I was now nearer the 
influence of Washington than when I was directly 
under Farragut and his great personal prestige, the 
objections prevailed, and in one sense fortunately 
for me. It will be recalled that it was the Brook- 
lyn that led the wooden ships in past the forts at 
Mobile, following the monitors. When the monitor 



'i 

I 



ON THE JAMES RIVER 117 

Tecumseh was sunk by a torpedo and Captain Alden 
saw torpedoes ahead of the Brooklyn^ he stopped his 
ship, throwing the column out of formation. Farra- 
gut, with his famous call of "Damn the torpedoes! 
Go ahead!" signalled to proceed and steamed past 
the Brooklyn in the Hartford, taking the lead away 
from her. 

My next ship was hardly of the importance of 
the Mississippi, the Monongahela, or the Brooklyn. 
I was to put the Agawam, a third-rate, wooden, side- 
wheel steamer, into commission at Portsmouth. My 
friends explained to me that I had been given this 
task in organization and discipline because I had 
made a reputation as an executive officer equal to 
any emergency. However that may be, there can 
be no doubt that both the crew of the Agawam and 
the nature of the vessel and of the service expected 
of her gave me quite enough to do from the moment 
that I reported on board her, in November, 1863, 
until I was detached from her, a year later. 

She was built particularly for river service and 
being a double-ender, with two rudders of the ferry- 
boat type, she was as difficult in handling as in keep- 
ing ship-shape. During the spring and summer of 
1864 I saw some pretty active and trying service on 
the James River, where we were operating in sup- 
port of General Butler's abortive expedition toward 
Richmond, while Grant was fighting the Wilderness 
campaign. 



ii8 GEORGE DEWEY 

For about a month the Agawam was the flag- 
ship of Rear-Admiral S. P. Lee, commanding the 
North Atlantic Squadron. Lee was another one of 
the captains who," at the outbreak of the Civil War, 
was still in the prime of his powers. He was off the 
Cape of Good Hope in command of a ship bound 
for China when he heard that Sumter had been 
fired on. Without waiting on an order from Wash- 
ington, he started home on his own responsibility, in 
the conviction that the services of his ship would be 
needed. He was a man of prodigious and conscien- 
tious industry. 

Commander A. C. Rhind, in command of the 
Agawam, had earned a reputation for fearlessness in 
the war and fearlessness in controversy before the 
war. While in the Pacific Squadron years before, 
as I recall, he had been suspended by Boutwell, the 
commander of his ship. Afterward, when his case 
was on trial in Washington, he posted a notice out- 
side the Navy Department to this effect: "Bout- 
well is a liar and a scoundrel." Though the Retir- 
ing Board dropped him from the navy, he was able 
to have himself reinstated, and to prove that, how- 
ever eccentric he might be in time of peace, he could 
be of great service in battle. 

The Agazvam's most important action occupied 
her off and on for six days in pounding the Confed- 
erate batteries at Four Mile Creek to aid General 
Butler's attack. On the first day we engaged one 



ON THE JAMES RIVER 119 

battery of rifled guns which we could locate and two 
batteries of mortars and heavy guns which we could 
not locate; and we kept up a continuous fire for 
four hours, until our ammunition was exhausted. 
But we had pretty well silenced the enemy before 
we drew off, and on succeeding days we did not have 
to endure so heavy a fire. The Agawavi was little 
damaged, though hit a number of times, and our 
only loss was from an exploding shell on the quarter- 
deck which killed two men and wounded six. 

In one sense the fighting was the easiest part of 
the work. The hard part was the life aboard the 
stuffy double-ender in the midst of heat and mos- 
quitoes, striving all the while to develop a kind of 
efficiency suited to the tasks for which such a clumsy 
craft was adapted. 

But if the Agawam were not much to look at, 
Commander Rhind surely fought her as if she were 
a battle-ship. She exemplified the spirit which our 
naval force had developed by the summer of 1864. 
We were hardened and ready for any kind of ser- 
vice; and the survival of the fittest, through the 
test of the initiative required and the hardships suf- 
fered, had brought to the front a type of man who 
sought responsibilities instead of waiting for them 
to find him out. 

When Rear-Admiral David D. Porter succeeded 
Rear-Admiral Lee in command of the North Atlantic 
Squadron in September, 1864, he sent for me to be- 



I20 GEORGE DEWEY 

come executive officer of the Min7iesota, one of the 
big steam-frigates of the same class as the Wabash 
in which I had made my midshipman cruise on the 
Mediterranean. But I was on board the Minnesota 
less than one day. Her captain voiced the old com- 
plaint about my youth, and Porter not being of the 
mind to assign him an executive whom he did not 
want, I returned to the Agawam. 

But Porter had kept me in mind, and later he 
wrote to Assistant Secretary of the Navy Fox asking 
him to assign me to be executive officer of the Col- 
orado, of the same class as the Wabash. From the 
outset of the war, Fox had had great confidence in 
Porter's judgment; and so, in spite of my youth — 
twenty-seven — I was to have a position which is 
equivalent in these days to being executive of a 
first-class battle-ship. Instead of vegetating on the 
Agawam on river blockade duty, I was to be in both 
actions against Fort Fisher, for which Porter was 
now making his preparations. 

Porter, though only a lieutenant in '6i, was most 
influential by right of his very active mind and 
energetic personality. He had been partly respon- 
sible for having the then unknown Farragut given 
command of the Gulf Squadron, which Porter him- 
self could not have taken because of insufficiency of 
rank. It was thought, however, that Porter, on ac- 
count of his command of the mortar flotilla, which 
was a new and spectacular addition to our forces. 



ON THE JAMES RIVER 121 

would receive most of the distinction for the battle 
of New Orleans. Farragut running past the forts 
in the darkness with his wooden ships became the 
hero of the operation; though it might be said that 
the glory was kept in the family, as Porter and Far- 
ragut were foster-brothers. It was intended that 
Farragut should take command at Fort Fisher, but 
his health, after the wearing campaign in Southern 
waters which had culminated at Mobile, would not 
permit. He gladly relinquished the honor in favor 
of Porter, thus, in a way, reciprocating the favor 
that Porter had done him three years previously. 



CHAPTER X 
THE BATTLE OF FORT FISHER 

We were now coming to the final act of the ter- 
rific drama of civil conflict. With the length of the 
Mississippi in our possession, with every port on the 
Gulf of Mexico flying the national flag, our forces 
were closing in on the last remnants of the Confed- 
eracy, which had only two ports remaining that 
would admit of the approach of a vessel of over 
twelve feet draught, Charleston in South Carolina 
and Wilmington in North Carolina. 

Charleston was not so difficult to blockade as 
Wilmington. While we had some twenty vessels on 
the blockade off Charleston, more than thirty had 
usually been watching off the two entrances to Wil- 
mington. Even then the runners would frequently 
slip by under cover of fog or when a gale was blow- 
ing. The Confederates fully realized the strategic 
importance of the position, and commanding New 
Inlet, at the mouth of the Cape Fear River, was Fort 
Fisher, which they had sought to make impregnable 
with all the resources at their command. Once both 
Charleston and Wilmington were effectually closed, 
then, with Sherman's army swinging in northward 
and Grant's approaching Richmond, the enemy was 



THE BATTLE OF FORT FISHER 123 

literally sealed up and must face the spring of 1865 
without hope of supplies. 

The plan was to silence Fort Fisher by the fire 
of the fleet and then to take it by assault with troops 
which were brought by sea under General Butler. 
For the purpose Porter had the largest naval force 
yet assembled. Including every available fighting- 
ship, it was even more heterogeneous than that of 
Farragut at New Orleans. Big frigates of the Col- 
orado type, iron-clads and monitors, double-enders, 
gun-boats, and merchant-vessels transformed into 
ships-of-war, and every one, according to the Ameri- 
can custom, bristling with all the armament that it 
could possibly carry. The Colorado, which had an 
armament of forty smooth-bore guns before the war, 
now had one rifled 150-pounder, one ii-inch shell 
gun, and forty-six 9-inch shell guns. 

Commodore H. K. Thatcher, in command of the 
Colorado, welcomed me on board heartily, notwith- 
standing my youth. He said that the ship was in 
a bad state and gave me fuU authority in the gov- 
ernment of the crew of seven hundred men. My 
predecessor as executive officer had had a pretty 
wearing and unhappy time of it and was retired 
shortly after leaving the ship. There had been as 
many as a hundred men in irons chained between 
the guns along the gun-deck at one time. As officers 
passed along, the men would call out: "Look at the 
brass bound ," "brass bound" referring to 



124 GEORGE DEWEY 

the officer's gold braid. My predecessor was what 
is known as a rather erratic martinet. He was harsh, 
yet he did not secure disciphne. I was told that one 
of his favorite questions to a culprit had been: "How 
would you like to walk through hell barefoot?" One 
seaman was reported to have answered: "A dozen 
times to get out of this!" 

Most of the junior officers, as they had been on 
the other ships on which I had served, were volun- 
teers. Some were highly efficient, others, who had 
secured their commissions through political influence, 
were inferior in every way to many of the men over 
whom they were supposed to exercise command. A 
portion of the crew which had been recently shipped 
was a motley collection of flotsam of various nation- 
alities. We were in the period of recruiting by draft 
and of "bounty jumper" substitutes. While too 
much cannot be said in praise of the heroism and 
devotion of the men who enlisted for the war out 
of patriotic motives, there is little danger of exag- 
gerating the toughness and worthlessness of many 
who came in at the close of the conflict and, in a 
later time, helped to swell the pension fund. One 
glance by a recruiting officer of to-day would have 
been enough to have rejected at least one-third of 
the crew of the Colorado, just on their looks. 

In passing, I think that I may say that our low- 
est types of men to-day are not so depraved, igno- 
rant, and generally intractable as the corresponding 



THE BATTLE OF FORT FISHER 125 

type of the sixties. After all, the world does grow 
better. 

I did not mean on a ship where I was responsible 
for discipline to have a hundred men in chains on the 
gun-deck or to have them calling out abusive epi- 
thets to their superiors. If the state of insubordina- 
tion on board had been responsible for Porter's desire 
to have me become executive of the Colorado, then 
I felt myself bound to live up to his expectations. 
It had been my experience that only a minority of 
any crew were trouble-makers. A larger proportion 
was all on the side of discipline and decency. But 
one professional tough is capable of corrupting at 
least two other men who are easily led. It was a 
case of my being master, or the rough element being 
master. 

When I called all hands my first morning on 
board, not all responded. It was explained that on 
account of the cold weather a number of the men 
would not get up. Certain of the junior officers 
seemed afraid of some members of their own crew. 
I went among the hammocks, and whenever I found 
one occupied I tipped the man out of it; and I 
aimed to do this in a way that left no doubt of the 
business-like intentions of the new regime. The men 
saw that I meant to be obeyed, and afterward when 
I called all hands all appeared on deck. 

Gradually I was able to identify the worst char- 
acters. They were the ones I had to tame, and then 



126 GEORGE DEWEY 

those who were insubordinate out of a spirit of emu- 
lation would easily fall into line. The ringleader 
was a giant, red-headed Englishman by the name 
of Webster. Many of his mates were in bodily fear 
of this great brute. The prison being full, I had 
him put down in the hold in irons. 

One day I heard a breaking of glass and the or- 
derly reported to me that Webster had broken free 
of his irons, had driven the sentry out of the hold, 
and in a blind rage was breaking up stone bottles 
of soda and ale which were stored there. I sent the 
master at arms to arrest him, and the master at arms 
came back to report that Webster had sworn that 
he would kill the first man who tried to come down 
the ladder into the hold. 

Such a situation was not to be endured. I took 
my revolver and started for the hold. When I came 
to the ladder Webster yelled up the threat which had 
made the others hesitate in view of his known feroc- 
ity. Of course, any one going down the ladder would 
expose his whole body to an attack before his head 
was below the deck level and he could see his ad- 
versary. But any temporizing with the fellow meant 
a bad effect on the whole ship's company. 

"Webster, this is the executive officer, Mr. 
Dewey," I called to him. "I am coming down and, 
Webster, you may be sure of this, if you raise a 
finger against me I shall kill you." 

I stepped down the ladder quickly, to see Web- 



THE BATTLE OF FORT FISHER 127 

ster standing with a stone ale bottle in his hand 
ready to throw. But he did not throw it and sub- 
mitted to arrest peaceably. 

This incident and a few others, while the junior 
officers were developing a new spirit under Commo- 
dore Thatcher's wise support and firm direction, 
soon brought a change over the ship. The ruffians 
were cowed and we were free of the obnoxious spec- 
tacle of men in irons on the gun-deck and of abuse 
in answer to an officer's commands. 

The Confederates had counted much on the 
weather to delay any bombardment on Fort Fisher. 
December and January are the season of the heavi- 
est blows off the coast. While preparing for the 
attack the ships must lie exposed to the seas sweep- 
ing in from the open ocean. A gale rose just as the 
fleet was mobilizing. It dragged many anchors and 
pretty well dispersed the vessels, increasing the dis- 
comforts of the soldiers aboard the transports by 
sea-sickness. 

An act of gallantry of the same order as that of 
Lieutenants Crosby and Caldwell in cutting through 
the obstructions above Forts Jackson and St. Philip 
was to prepare the way for the actual bombardment 
and assault. An old vessel, the Louisiana, was 
filled with powder and disguised as a blockade-runner, 
with a view to running her in close to Fort Fisher 
in the night and deserting her after laying time fuses 
to the powder. It was thought that the force of 



128 GEORGE DEWEY 

the explosion of such an enormous amount of powder 
would damage the fort and dismount the guns. 
Commander Rhind, my old captain of the Agawaniy 
was in charge of the undertaking. He carried it out 
without being discovered by the enemy. 

I recall how we who were on board the fleet at 
anchor some twenty-five miles from the fort waited 
through the night of December 23d for the explosion. 
Shortly before two o'clock on the next morning we 
saw something like distant lightning on the horizon. 
After a time came a dull, thundering sound, and a 
couple of hours later a dense cloud of smoke swept 
over us, such as might have come from a volcanic 
eruption. 

The eff^ect of the enormous charge, which was 
necessarily at some distance from the fort, was neg- 
ligible for our purposes. This experiment was mag- 
nificent and spectacular but not helpful, as both 
Porter and Butler were soon to learn. Many were 
of the opinion that it might have been effective if 
the Louisiana had been grounded instead of having 
been blown up while floating free of the bottom. 
As it was, the shock was lost in the water and the 
gunners in the fort were so little disturbed that they 
thought the sound was that of the boiler of some 
blockade-runner that had blown up. 

At daylight our ill-assorted fleet stood in for New 
Inlet, which the forts commanded. We were at- 
tempting something in the way of formation which 



THE BATTLE OF FORT FISHER 129 

this fleet had never tried, but which would have 
been child's play to a fleet of the present time. An 
officer who may have been with our squadron enter- 
ing Manila Bay, with the ships keeping their inter- 
vals precisely, or who is used to the manoeuvres of 
the North Atlantic fleet at the time of writing, can 
hardly realize the difficulties of securing anything 
like precision with the utterly inharmonious elements 
that Porter had under his command. 

As we approached the Inlet it looked for a while 
as if our long column would be tied in a knot. How- 
ever, it straightened out with surprising regularity, 
thanks to the experienced officers, each of whom 
knew how to handle the peculiarities of his own ship. 
Vessel after vessel in order, if not keeping its proper 
distance, came into the position assigned it, without 
any break in Porter's plan. 

Shortly before i p. m., the New Ironsides, which 
was at the head of the first division, opened fire; 
and at 1.30 the Colorado, second in the column of 
the heavy ships, or the second division, was engaged. 
Each vessel dropped anchor from bow and stern. 
Each one practically became a floating battery pour- 
ing shells into the fort. For over three hours the 
cannonade continued, that of the fort gradually 
weakening. When the flag-ship signalled at 5.30, 
"Prepare to retire for the night," it seemed to us 
that we had pretty effectually silenced Fisher. The 
Colorado had been struck a number of times, but not 



I30 GEORGE DEWEY 

seriously. All the casualties in the fleet that day, 
with the exception of a boiler explosion on the Mack- 
inaw, were due to the bursting of the lOO-pounder 
Parrot rifled guns. These proved to be about as 
dangerous to us as to the enemy and were not used 
again. 

Meanwhile, the transports had been delayed in 
getting up. But that night all arrived and the land 
attack was planned for the following day. Having 
found that the depth of water permitted, the Colo- 
rado, Minnesota, and Wabash, heavy-draught ships, 
were the next morning able to approach closer to 
the fort. We fired at slow intervals, as if we were 
at target practice, and we could see shell after shell 
taking efl"ect. It seemed as if our fire must reduce 
these earthworks to so many sand dunes. With 
such a long line of ships firing and at such a long 
face of works; with the air in a continual thunder 
and screech, there was no time to observe anything 
except the work of your own ship and the signals 
from the flag-ship. 

At times the Colorado would be the target for a 
number of guns, and again we would seem to have 
silenced the batteries facing us. But there was 
never a moment when our men were not doing their 
work steadily and without a thought on the part of 
any one but that we had the fire of the forts well 
under control. We had one rifled gun disabled, and 
were receiving only desultory attention from the 



THE BATTLE OF FORT FISHER 131 

enemy when, under signal from the flag-ship, the 
other ships began drawing off. 

The Minnesota and the Colorado remained an- 
chored before the forts while the rest of the fleet 
was passing out of range. Suddenly the batteries 
concentrated on us. Our capstan was shot away; 
a lo-inch sohd shot penetrated the starboard side, 
carrying away the lock and screw of No. 4 gun, kill- 
ing one man and wounding five men, and carrying 
away the axle and starboard truck of No. 5 gun on 
the port side. 

It was a time for quick thinking on the bridge. 
We had been told to discontinue action, but not to 
withdraw; and it was out of the question to endure 
that grilling fire in which we were being repeatedly 
hit. For an instant the alternative of slipping an- 
chors and steaming away was considered by Com- 
modore Thatcher, but that meant retreat without 
orders and possibly having our decision misconstrued, 
while we should be heavily pounded in the very act 
of retiring. We had silenced those guns that were 
barking at us once and we could do it again, the 
commodore concluded. As senior officer present he 
signalled the Mmnesota to fire for her own protec- 
tion, and repeated to the flag-ship the reason why 
we were opening fire contrary to orders. I ran along 
the gun-deck, where I found the men chafing in their 
inaction or astounded and apprehensive over the 
damage that was being wrought, and I kept calling: 



132 GEORGE DEWEY 

"Fire! Fire as fast as you can! That is the 
way to stop their fire!" 

Our gun crews obeyed with the avidity of des- 
peration. Occupation with their work gave them 
no time to consider the effect of the enemy's shells, 
to which our guns blazed in answer with telling ac- 
curacy. The batteries found out that we were any- 
thing but disabled, and they were silent when the 
signal from the flag-ship came, this time not to dis- 
continue but to retire from action. These few min- 
utes of splendid and effective gunnery developed a 
fine spirit in the whole ship. We steamed out of 
range with the satisfaction of the victor amid the 
cheers of the fleet. 

All day we had been watching in vain for signs 
of the approach of the army's assaulting force over 
the sand dunes. When we received orders that night 
to proceed to our base at Beaufort we knew that 
Fort Fisher was not to be ours this time. Butler 
had decided that the fire of the fleet had not done 
the fort enough damage to make the assault prac- 
ticable; and after all the powder we had burned he 
returned with his troops on board his transports. 

It is not for me to go into the details of an old 
controversy; but the fact remains that three weeks 
later another assault did succeed after the defences 
of Fort Fisher had been considerably strengthened. 
The upshot was not an altogether felicitous ending 
of Butler's military career, and its lesson would seem 



THE BATTLE OF FORT FISHER 133 

to be that the thing to do when your country ex- 
pects you to attack Is to attack. 

While Porter was continuing the blockade he 
sent any vessels not needed for this purpose to Beau- 
fort for ammunition, and asked for further instruc- 
tions. Their character at that stage of the war was 
inevitable. Gentle and patient as President Lincoln 
was, he had indomitable firmness on occasion. Only 
four days after Butler had withdrawn with his trans- 
ports. Porter had a message from the secretary of 
the navy that Lieutenant-General Grant would send 
immediately "a competent force, properly com- 
manded," to undertake the assault in which Butler 
had failed. 

"Properly commanded" meant the choice of 
Major-General A. H. Terry. While we mobilized 
at Beaufort and waited for his coming we labored 
in heavy weather getting coal and ammunition on 
board and a second time going through the details 
of making ready for bombardment. We were prac- 
tically at anchor in the open sea, with the breakers 
rolling in from thousands of miles. Some of the 
heavy transports rode out a gale in the company of 
the men-of-war. But no accident occurred and no 
appreciable delay in the preparations. 

The fact that the Confederates had boasted of a 
victory after Butler's withdrawal — though they had 
not sunk a single vessel and had inflicted but few 
casualties and little damage, while our troops had 



134 GEORGE DEWEY 

not attempted an assault — aroused in both our army 
and navy the determination to wipe out such an 
impression promptly. On the 12th of January we 
sailed from our base at Beaufort, forty-eight men- 
of-war in all, escorting the numerous army trans- 
ports. That night we anchored within twelve miles 
of the fort. The next day we proceeded to take up 
our old positions. As the smaller ships were ahead, 
they received a vigorous fire until the heavier ships 
came up, when their powerful armament soon drove 
the Confederate gunners into their bomb-proofs. 
Meanwhile Terry's troops had been put ashore. 
This time there was no question of discretion on the 
part of the army commander. Fort Fisher was to 
be taken at any cost. 

As darkness fell, the fleet was pouring out am- 
munition without stint. A breeze rising lifted the 
pall of smoke, revealing the fort clearly, lighted by 
the flashes of our shells. At 9 a. m. the next morn- 
ing, the 14th, the signal came from the flag-ship, 
which meant that all was ready to carry out the 
plan that had been arranged between Porter and 
Terry. While the troops assaulted on the land side, 
a force of sixteen hundred sailors and marines were 
to assault the sea face of the fort. Every ship sent 
its quota. As executive officer, I should have been 
in command of the Colorado's force, but, despite my 
plea. Commodore Thatcher would not let me go. 
Being the senior officer present after Porter, if any- 



THE BATTLE OF FORT FISHER 135 

thing should happen to Porter the command of the 
fleet would fall to him and, in consequence, the com- 
mand of the ship to me. In view of such an event- 
uality I was ordered to remain on board, much to 
my disgust. 

The Colorado's part during the day was the same 
as that at the previous bombardment. We joined 
the other ships in pounding the batteries as hard as 
we could with all our guns. How terrific that bom- 
bardment was may be realized when I say that in 
the two days Porter's fleet discharged against Fort 
Fisher over eighteen thousand shells. 

This time we did not have to watch in vain for 
signs of the assaulting force. We could see very 
clearly the naval detachment which had landed 
under the face of the fort. The seamen were to 
make the assault, while the marines covered their 
advance by musketry from the trenches which they 
had thrown up. For weapons the seamen had only 
cutlasses and revolvers, which evidently were chosen 
with the Idea that storming the face of the strong- 
est work In the Civil War was the same sort of opera- 
tion as boarding a frigate In 181 2. Such an attempt 
was sheer, murderous madness. But the seamen 
had been told to go and they went. 

In face of a furious musketry fire which they had 
no way of answering they rushed to within fifty 
yards of the parapet. Three times they closed up 
their shattered ranks and attempted another charge, 



136 GEORGE DEWEY 

but could gain little more ground. How Flag- 
Captain Breeze, who was in command, leading his 
men and waving his sword, escaped death, is one of 
those marvels that almost make one accept the 
superstition that some men do lead a charmed life. 

Our losses in the assault in officers alone were four 
killed and fourteen wounded, which is proof enough 
of how unhesitatingly they exposed themselves, fol- 
lowing Breeze's example. The falling figures of the 
killed and wounded and the desperate rallies of the 
living were as clear as stage pantomime to their 
shipmates on board the fleet, who witnessed a piece 
of splendid folly of the same order as the charge of 
the Light Brigade, in which, however, it was not a 
case of one wild ride but of repeated attempts at 
the impossible. We may be proud of the heroism, 
if not of the wisdom, of the naval landing force's as- 
sault on Fort Fisher, which, no doubt, did serve some 
purpose in holding the enemy's attention while the 
army pressed in from the rear. 

We had glimpses of the blue figures of the sol- 
diers as they progressed in taking the outer defences, 
finally storming their way into the works themselves 
with a gallantry and precision in the face of heavy 
losses which would not be gainsaid. Soon after night- 
fall the last shot in resistance was fired from the fort. 
The fleet sent up rockets celebrating the victory won 
by an attack which must stand high in history, both 
for its skill and its courage. Indeed, the manner in 



THE BATTLE OF FORT FISHER 137 

which Major-General Terry had conducted the whole 
operation was significant of the efficiency of the offi- 
cers and men of the veteran army which was the in- 
strument with which Grant won peace at last. 

What Appomattox was for the Federal army, 
Fort Fisher was for the Federal navy. Profession- 
ally the war had meant nearly four years' training 
for me as an executive officer. Had I had my choice 
of experience, it could not have been better in its 
training for command. I knew the business of being 
the responsible executive of a large crew on a big 
ship, with my work subject to the direction of an 
older head. 

Soon after Fort Fisher Commodore Thatcher 
was relieved from the Colorado and promoted to act- 
ing rear-admiral to relieve Farragut in command of 
the Gulf Squadron. He wished me to go with him 
as his chief of staff, but I was only about to receive 
my promotion as lieutenant-commander, and the 
Navy Department again found my youth an ob- 
stacle. And my youth in the eyes of Captain R. H. 
Wyman, who took Thatcher's place, also made me 
inacceptable to him as executive. In six months 
after I left the Colorado, however, she had lost a 
hundred men by desertion. A sort of left-handed 
promotion took me to the Kearsarge, the victor over 
the Alabama, as executive, and I was on board her on 
that happy day for the Union cause when we dressed 
ship in honor of the surrender of Lee to Grant. 



CHAPTER XI 
SERVICE AFTER THE WAR 

With the war over, the officers and men of the 
navy were entitled to a hohday. The European 
Squadron was re-estabhshed. We crossed the At- 
lantic with the prestige of veteran ships and a veteran 
personnel which had revolutionized naval warfare. 
Our presence in European waters once we spoke for 
a united country again — after all the vicissitudes of 
the four years during which the blockade had devel- 
oped hostility both in England and France — could 
not help having an international significance. If 
not regarded with affection, we were regarded with 
respect and interest. Our officers were given leave 
of absence which enabled them to see the capitals; 
and in many other ways the service was most agree- 
able. 

After being with the Kearsarge for nearly a year 
I became executive officer of the Canandaigua. Then 
Rear-Admiral Goldsborough, commanding the Eu- 
ropean Squadron, who as captain had been superin- 
tendent the first year that I was at Annapolis, took 
me as his flag-lieutenant, giving me my first staff 
experience. When the executive officer of the Colo- 

radoj in which I had served at Fort Fisher, was de- 

138 



SERVICE AFTER THE WAR 139 

tached, the admiral, who had always had a fondness 
for me, I think, on account of the fight in the mess- 
room, said: 

"Now is your chance! Take the Colorado and 
make a man-of-war of her." 

So I had my old ship from which I had been 
detached because of my youth at the instance of 
Commodore Thatcher's successor, after I had seen 
her through a battle. There had been friction be- 
tween her captain and her executive, and discipline 
was at a low ebb. However, it was soon restored. 
Thus, from 1862 to 1867, 1 had been executive officer 
of no less than nine ships. 

Among the officers on the Colorado was Lieuten- 
ant-Commander William T. Sampson, afterward 
commander of the North Atlantic Squadron in the 
Spanish War, with whom I formed a life-long friend- 
ship. Nature had been kind to Sampson. Not only 
had he a most brilliant mind and the qualities of 
a practical and efficient officer on board ship, but he 
was, in those days of his youth, one of the hand- 
somest men I have ever seen, with a bearing at once 
modest and dignified. Already he was a marked 
man among his fellow-officers, who, in a profession 
which is so strictly technical, are the best judges of 
a confrere s abilities. As a mess companion he was 
an inspiration, and many were the professional dis- 
cussions we had, now agreeing and now disagreeing 
with equal earnestness. As young men we were 



I40 GEORGE DEWEY 

looking ahead to the future developments of naval 
science which had been given such an impetus from 
'6i to '65, while we still enjoyed the traditions of 
the old sailing-ship days, and frequently, in passage 
from port to port, had the Colorado under full sail, 
while our engines were silent. 

Altogether I was in European waters over two 
years. About a week before the Colorado was to 
start for home, when the whole squadron was in the 
harbor of Cherbourg, the Franklin came in, bearing 
the four-starred flag of Admiral Farragut, whose 
forthcoming cruise in European waters was to be a 
triumphal progress. His was now the great naval 
name of the world. 

He was sixty-six years old. He seemed as lively 
as in the days on the Mississippi, and we thought 
that he would live to hale old age to enjoy the honors 
he had so deservedly won. When he came on board 
the Colorado with his staff, he was received with all 
the pomp of his rank, including airs by our band 
of thirty-two pieces, which had no equal in the navy. 
He went all over the ship, inspecting every detail, 
and made no concealment of his delight over what 
he saw. Before going, he turned to Captain Pen- 
nock, his brother-in-law, who was captain of the 
Franklin, and said: 

^'Pennock, I want the Franklin tobe just like this.'* 

European hospitality was harder on his health 
than the Mississippi campaign, and after that tour 



SERVICE AFTER THE WAR 141 

of many ports with continual social functions, when 
he returned home everybody remarked that he was 
rapidly failing. His last cruise was from Norfolk 
to Portsmouth. Though he was in his cabin and 
scarcely able to rise, when a man-of-war passed and 
saluted his flag he felt it his duty to put on his uni- 
form and go on deck. That was the last time that 
his flag was ever saluted at sea. He died in the 
commandant's house at Portsmouth. Not long be- 
fore his death my father-in-law and I called on him. 
It was a shock to see how pale and thin he had be- 
come. Yet, ill as he was, he retained his old-time 
cheerful manner, which had ever endeared him to 
his subordinates. Many years afterward I had the 
pleasure of unveiling a bronze tablet to his memory 
in the house where he died. 

In September, 1867, soon after the Colorado was 
back in the Brooklyn Navy Yard, I was detached 
and ordered to the Naval Academy in charge of the 
fourth class of midshipmen and in general charge of 
the ships stationed there. This was my first assign- 
ment to shore duty, excepting the short period as 
prize commissioner in New Orleans, for nine years, 
or since 1858, when I started on my midshipman 
cruise on the Wabash. 

A month after receiving my orders I was mar- 
ried in Portsmouth, N. H., to Susan Boardman 
Goodwin, daughter of ex-Governor Goodwin, of New 
Hampshire; and so I took my bride to Annapolis, 



142 GEORGE DEWEY 

where I spent three happy years. There were a 
great many other young officers and their brides at 
that station. David D. Porter, then vice-admiral, 
was superintendent, and he was as fond of spirit in 
social functions as in war. There was so much gay- 
ety that one cynical officer referred to the institu- 
tion as "Porter's Dancing Academy." However, 
Porter's great reputation left him free of any impu- 
tation of having the frivolous side of his nature over- 
developed at the expense of any other. Few men 
whom I have known had such a buoyantly irrepres- 
sible, active temperament as he. His mind seemed 
equally resourceful in a battle or at a reception. 

During my first year the midshipmen lived on 
board the training-ships stationed at Annapolis, 
which included the brave old Constitution. Their 
quarters were stuffy, and, on account of poor ven- 
tilation, were no place for growing boys who needed 
plenty of fresh air. The next year, however, they 
lived in the new building, which was much better 
for them, while they still might drill as seamen on 
board ship and know life in ship's quarters on cruises. 

Porter was succeeded during the last year of my 
stay at Annapolis by Rear-Admiral John L. Worden, 
who made me his aide in addition to my other duties. 
Neither Porter nor Worden was a graduate of An- 
napolis. As the Academy had been established only 
twenty-two years, no graduate as yet had enough 
rank to be superintendent. 



SERVICE AFTER THE WAR 143 

Worden was a positive character, in keeping with 
the determined way that he fought, not only the 
Monitor in the famous action against the Merrimac, 
but also the other ships intrusted to his command 
during the war. In common with many of the older 
officers, he was not yet convinced that the academic 
schooling of Annapolis was a wiser system in giving 
future officers a groundwork than the old-fashioned 
system of apprenticeship on board ship while actu- 
ally cruising. I recollect that one day, when I was 
at work at a desk in his office, he had a midship- 
man up for some infraction of discipline, and he 
broke out: 

"Where you ought to be, young man, is not 
ashore in a landsman's school, but right on board 
ship, where you would learn the business of being a 
seaman in the same hard school that I learned it." 

At this, well knowing the admiral's views on the 
score, which were often repeated, the midshipman 
grinned slightly, perhaps unconsciously. 

"Don't you grin at me or I will throw you out 
of the window!" Worden blazed. 

The midshipman's face went very stiff and sober 
at such a "dressing down" from the autocrat of 
Annapolis and one of the great heroes of the war. 
For some reason I myself could not resist a smile at 
the situation, and the admiral caught me at it, too. 
For a minute I did not know but he might try to 
throw me out of the window. However, he con- 
trolled his temper and said nothing. 



144 GEORGE DEWEY 

Upon leaving the Naval Academy I had my first 
regular command, though on various occasions I had 
been acting commander of a vessel in the regular 
commander's absence. I was given the Narragan- 
sett, a third-class sloop. I had spent three months 
on board her in New York harbor without orders 
to go to sea when I was transferred to the Supply, 
one of three naval vessels that had been detailed to 
take supplies contributed by the American public to 
the relief of the French who had suffered privations 
in the siege of Paris. She was an antiquated store- 
ship of a little over five hundred tons burden. 

As we had to cross the Atlantic under sail, the 
relief we carried was not very expeditious, to say the 
least. When we arrived at Havre we found the 
wharves piled with supplies which were neglected, 
as at that time Paris was in the throes of the Com- 
mune. A telegram from the committee in charge of 
delivering the stores instructed me to take them to 
London, where they could be sold and the proceeds 
distributed to better advantage than if I landed 
them. So I took the Supply up the Thames to the 
London docks, where I turned my cargo over to the 
committee, consisting of the American minister, Mr. 
Junius S. Morgan, Mr. Charles Marshall, the banker, 
and Mr. Charles Lanier. I spent a delightful month 
in London with my friend Francis Blake, a banker, 
who had formerly been in the navy. 

Upon my return I was at the Boston Navy Yard 
for a few months, and then was sent to the naval 



SERVICE AFTER THE WAR 145 

torpedo station at Newport. Here, on December 
23, 1872, my son, George Goodwin Dewey, was born. 
The death of his mother occurred five days later, 
and in the following February I was detached from 
a station which was ever to have sad associations 
for me. 

While at Newport I had received my promotion 
as commander, and now, in the spring of 1873, I was 
given the Narragansett again. She was in Panama 
Bay, where I joined her, and with her I spent over 
two years surveying the peninsula of Lower Cali- 
fornia and the coast of Mexico as far as Cape Corri- 
entes. The charts which we made are still in use. 

We were in the Gulf of California when the news- 
papers arrived with word of the Virginius affair. 
Resentment against Spain was so strong in the 
United States that war seemed inevitable. Going 
into the wardroom, I found the officers sitting about 
in various attitudes of despondency. Among them 
was Ensign, now R ear-Admiral, Badger, who re- 
members the conversation very well. I asked them 
why they were so blue. They said that there was 
to be war with Spain and, marooned thousands of 
miles from home, they would be entirely out of it. 

"On the contrary, we shall be very much in it," 
I said. "If war with Spain is declared, the Narra- 
gansett will take Manila." 

I had always been interested in the Philippine 
Islands and had read whatever books I could find 



146 GEORGE DEWEY 

relating to them, and my familiarity with the sub- 
ject immediately suggested them as a logical point 
of attack. If the inevitable conflict with Spain had 
come then, it is possible that I should have enjoyed 
the same privilege that was to be mine twenty-five 
years later. 

The N arragansett frequently took refuge in the 
hurricane anchorage at La Paz, usually for the pur- 
pose of working up our charts and refitting ship. 
On these occasions I often visited the silver mines lo- 
cated at Triunfo in the interior, about forty miles 
from La Paz. These mines were owned and managed 
by Americans, who also filled all the subordinate 
positions requiring expert knowledge. The heavy 
labor was done by Mexicans, some five or six hun- 
dred being employed. Mr. Brook, the manager, 
was most hospitable. I was made to feel very much 
at home at his residence at the mines, and enjoyed 
many delightful rides from that point as a base, in 
company with him and his ten-year-old son. 

While the N arragansett was lying in La Paz har- 
bor, delayed by bad weather beyond her expected 
sailing date, a messenger from the mines brought on 
board a note from Mr. Brook. The note was ob- 
viously written in great haste and stated that the 
Mexicans at the mines had risen against the Ameri- 
cans and were besieging them in their compound and 
threatening to massacre the entire colony. Appeals 
for relief had been sent to the governor at La Paz, 



SERVICE AFTER THE WAR 147 

but without result. Mr. Brook was writing to me, 
he said, in the faint hope that my ship might still 
be in port. He begged me to take some action 
promptly if his note reached me, as he could not 
hope to hold out much longer. 

The governor of the district, whose head-quarters 
were at La Paz, was a brigadier-general in the Mex- 
ican army, and a rather domineering character, I had 
inferred from my previous associations with him. 
He had under his immediate command in La Paz 
about one hundred regular Mexican troops. The 
Narragansett's landing force was very small. I real- 
ized that there would be little promise of any re- 
sult other than catastrophe if I should endeavor to 
despatch such a small body through forty miles of 
hostile country, leaving between themselves and 
their base a force of the enemy so greatly superior 
in numbers as the Mexican guard in La Paz. It 
was obvious that other tactics were demanded. 

I sent for my executive officer. Lieutenant George 
C. Reiter, now a rear-admiral on the retired list, and 
directed him to call at once upon the governor in 
company with our consul, and convey to him my 
request that he despatch troops immediately to the 
relief of the beleaguered American colony at the 
mines. He was to state further to the governor 
that, in the event of failure to act promptly and 
effectively in compliance with my request, I should 
take possession of the city and the custom-house and 



148 GEORGE DEWEY 

should retain possession at least pending instructions 
from my government. With the mail facilities at 
that time, certainly two months would elapse before 
such instructions could reach me from Washington, 
a fact well known to his Excellency. Mr. Reiter 
lost no time in getting ashore, nor did my message 
to the governor lose any of its force in transmission. 

The governor expressed astonishment and some 
petulance. He exclaimed: 

"Why does your government send irresponsible 
boys in command of its ships to foreign ports .^" 

At the time I was thirty-six years old, and there- 
fore not exactly a boy. 

Mr. Reiter assured him that I meant literally 
every word that I had said. The governor, looking 
from his window, observed that the Narragansett 
had just completed a shift of anchorage to a loca- 
tion commanding the main street of the city, his 
own official residence, and the custom-house. He 
sent word, and kept it, that the troops would be 
despatched immediately and that I need have no 
further apprehensions. 

Some months later I received from the Navy De- 
partment a clipping from a New York newspaper 
with head-lines announcing, "The right man in 
the right place," and text which narrated In lauda- 
tory terms the foregoing incident. The clipping was 
pasted on a sheet of official note-paper and followed 
by a written line: "The Department still awaits 



SERVICE AFTER THE WAR 149 

your report on this subject." In reply I informed 
the department exactly what had happened and 
stated that I had not considered it of sufficient im- 
portance to be made the subject of a report. I 
awaited the department's comment with some anx- 
iety. When it came, however, it was to the effect 
that my action was fully approved. 

Two years in the Gulf of California means prac- 
tical isolation; and surveying in that hot climate, 
as we used to keep at it from dawn to dark, was 
hard work. It was with the pleasant anticipation 
of seeing my little son and the home country that I 
received my orders detaching me from the Narra- 
gansett in the spring of 1875. 



CHAPTER XII 
BUILDING THE NEW NAVY 

In the long period of inertia for our navy after 
the Civil War, while the country took no interest 
in its defences and our ships did little cruising, of- 
ficers saw relatively a great deal of shore duty. 
Nearly every officer of this time was, sooner or later, 
connected in one capacity or another with the light- 
house service. 

After two years as light-house inspector for the 
second district, with head-quarters at Boston, in 
April, 1878, I was made naval secretary of the light- 
house board. This was my first tour of duty with 
residence in Washington. Major Peter C. Hains, of 
the engineer corps, was the army secretary, while 
the other members were two army and two naval 
officers, and three civilians, including Professor 
Henry, secretary of the Smithsonian Institution, a 
scientist of high repute in his day, to whom many 
gave the priority of credit for the invention of the 
magnetic telegraph. 

Among the questions that came up for settlement 

was the substitution of mineral for lard oil in the 

lamps. Professor Henry favored lard oil, which cost 

about seventy-five cents a gallon, while mineral 

150 



d 



BUILDING THE NEW NAVY 151 

oil cost eight cents. Major Hains and myself were 
for the innovation, which was accepted after we had 
convinced the professor by practical demonstration 
that mineral oil was the cheaper and really the better 
illuminant. We saw electric lights used in the large 
sea-coast light-houses for the first time; the introduc- 
tion of gas-lighted buoys, which were already in use 
in Europe; and we changed the system of paying 
the employees (which had been a source of dissatis- 
faction) from that of orders on the collectors of cus- 
toms to the simple one of direct payment by the 
inspectors. 

This position of naval secretary I held for the 
usual term of four years, beginning in the adminis- 
tration of President Hayes, and extending through 
the brief administration of President Garfield and 
the first year of President Arthur's. I found myself 
in Washington social life, with its round of dinners 
and receptions, which were a new and enjoyable 
experience to me, if exhausting physically. Among 
statesmen Blaine and Conkling were at the height 
of their careers; Grant's candidacy for a third term 
developed and failed; and Admiral Porter and Gen- 
eral Sherman, whom I frequently met, were still 
living. 

With the passage of time I had lost none of a 
Vermonter's fondness for good horse-flesh, and riding 
was my favorite exercise. On my afternoon consti- 
tutionals I often came up with a fine-looking, white- 



152 GEORGE DEWEY 

bearded old gentleman, who always wore a German 
cap. Sometimes as I overtook him I would draw 
rein and we would pass the time of day. Then, as 
I liked to go faster than he did, I would draw ahead 
of him, always receiving the politest bow in exchange 
for my own. 

He struck me as a most delightful person — 
and I conceived a real liking for him. One day I 
asked the watchman at the gate of the Soldiers' 
Home who this old gentleman was. He answered, 
"His name is Bancroft, and he is from Berlin." 
From this I knew that he was the historian and 
former secretary of the navy, and that he must 
have developed a fondness for German caps when 
he was our minister to Germany. 

The next time that I met him when I was riding 
I introduced myself and said: 

"As an officer of the navy, who owes so much to 
the Naval Academy that you established, I want to 
thank you." 

I could see that he liked the compliment with 
its reference to a service which many of that genera- 
tion had forgotten, and so we became good friends. 
I enjoyed many anecdotes from him when I slowed 
the pace of my horse to that of his in our afternoon 
rides. 

I was at a dinner later when both he and General 
Sherman were present. Menus were passed around 
with a request for autographs. General Sherman 



BUILDING THE NEW NAVY 153 

wrote his and underneath a word which Mr. Ban- 
croft could not make out. 

"What is it?" Mr. Bancroft asked. 

"General," answered Sherman. 

Mr. Bancroft, who had already written his auto- 
graph, asked for the menu back and under his name 
he added, "Octogenarian." He lived to be very old, 
and in his latter days his mind was feeble. He had 
to give up riding and was a familiar figure in the 
streets of Washington leaning on the arm of his 
German man-servant. 

One day when I was walking with Admiral Porter 
and we passed Bancroft I heard the valet say to him: 
"Lift your hat. That is Admiral Porter." For it 
was a custom in Washington to lift the hat to the 
admiral. Mr. Bancroft obeyed the valet's military 
direction, and Porter said to me: "Here he is told 
to lift his hat to me when I used to salute him as a 
superior." Porter had lifted his own hat in a man- 
ner that showed that the old feeling of a junior of- 
ficer in the presence of a former secretary of the 
navy had not passed. 

In October, 1882, I was ordered to the command 
of the Juniata, which was to proceed to the China 
station by way of the Mediterranean, the assignment 
being most welcome on account of my health. The 
Juniata was a second-rate sloop, built in 186 1. When 
I had gone to Europe with the Wabash on my mid- 
shipman cruise it had been in one of the finest frig- 



154 GEORGE DEWEY 

ates of my time. At the same station, in 1866, I 
joined a sister ship of the Wabash^ the Colorado, with 
the prestige that our navy had won in the Civil 
War. Now I was going in a reUc of a past epoch of 
naval warfare, which you would have expected to 
see flying the flag of some tenth-rate power. She 
was as out of date as the stage-coach. Her round 
bottom made her roll heavily with even a light swell, 
and an English sea-captain at Fayal declared that 
he had seen her keel out of water. 

Naval science had gone ahead rapidly and we 
had stood still. While Europe was building armored 
battle-ships and fast cruisers, we were making no 
additions to our navy. W^e had no sea-going com- 
merce to protect. With the coming of steel hulls 
and steam this had all passed to England and France, 
and that rising sea-power, the German Empire. 
Therefore, no one had any direct interest in the 
navy. Our antiquated men-of-war had become the 
laughing-stock of the nations. Their only possible 
utility was as something that would float for officers 
and men to cruise in in time of peace and be murdered 
in by a few broadsides in time of war. We had 
appropriations only for running expenses and re- 
pairs, none for building new ships. Italy, Spain, 
and Holland were each stronger on the sea than the 
United States. 

A sea-voyage did not bring me the improvement 
in health for which I had hoped; rather the contrary. 



BUILDING THE NEW NAVY 155 

When our antique Juniata entered the harbor of 
Gibraltar I was too ill to be on the bridge. Mr. 
Sprague, our consul, brought off a British physician 
for consultation with our ship's surgeon, and they 
made a thorough examination of me. A number of 
times he pressed his hand very forcibly against my 
liver, asking, "Does that hurt you?" and each time, 
though I had an excruciating twinge, I managed to 
keep a straight face and reply, "No." 

It was a foolish self-deceit on my part, but I was 
not minded to have any medical decision put me 
ashore and keep me from going to the Far East, 
where I had not as yet served. I thought I could 
wear down my indisposition, as many another man 
has thought under similar circumstances. 

When we arrived at Malta, however, I was taken 
ashore to the British Naval Hospital, with a com- 
plication of typhoid fever and abscess of the liver. 
I owe my life to the skill and care of the head sur- 
geon. Dr. James Nicholas Dick, a genial, warm- 
hearted, capable Irishman. For some time I had a 
tube in my side, and every day, rather than trust 
any junior surgeon or nurse, he himself attended to 
the abscess. He is still living, and is now Inspector- 
General Sir James Nicholas Dick, of the Directors 
General of the Medical Department, retired, and 
Honorary Surgeon to the King. 

After I was out of the hospital and the Juniata 
had proceeded on her way under a new commander, 



156 GEORGE DEWEY 

I was given sick-leave. Travelling from one resort 
to another in search of health, finally, in February, 
1884, I brought up at Santa Barbara, California, 
which will ever have the most grateful associations 
in my memory, for there I fully recovered, and to my 
delight, might again apply for assignment to duty. 

Now, at the age of forty-seven, I received my 
promotion from commander to captain, a grade 
which, thanks to the slowness of advancement, I 
was to hold for twelve years, or until a year before 
I went out to the command of the Asiatic Squadron, 
when I was made a commodore. I was given com- 
mand of the Dolphiuy which was not yet in com- 
mission. Later, owing to the disputes which arose 
over this, the first of our new ships, and the delay 
in getting her to sea, I was offered the command of 
the Pensacoluy which I gladly accepted. 

Of her I could say what the officer who had charge 
of towing the dry-dock to the Philippines said, when 
he was in my office in the General Board after his 
return and was looking at a picture of the Dewey 
riding a heavy sea: "I think I should know her if I 
ever saw her again!" The Pensacola had been the 
companion of the Mississippi in the laborious busi- 
ness of getting her over the bar for the battle of 
New Orleans, and she had been anchored in the 
river off New Orleans ahead of us during our long 
stay there in '62. At the close of the war she was 
already obsolete as a fighting naval unit, in com- 




CAPTAIN DEWEY AT THE AGE OF FORTY-SIX 



BUILDING THE NEW NAVY 157 

parlson with the New Ironsides or the monitors. 
Twenty years later, when the armored ships built 
in Europe five years previously were already out of 
date, and those built ten years previously were being 
put in reserve, she went abroad bearing the flag of 
Rear-Admiral Franklin. 

She was interesting because of her antiquity; but 
for the sake of picturesqueness as a survival, which 
was her only claim to attention, it would have been 
better if she had been a relic of the War of 181 2, 
which, for practical purposes, she might just as well 
have been. But there were statesmen who averred 
that if the Pensacola had fought well in the Civil 
War, she also would fight well enough in the '8o's. 
The best face we could present to foreign officers 
was to say that we were starting a new navy, while 
we kept the Pensacola and vessels of her class ship- 
shape and tried to learn modern gunnery by target 
practice with her obsolete guns. There was not a 
fourth-rate British cruiser of modern build that could 
not easily have kept out of range of her battery, 
torn her to pieces, and set her on fire. 

When I was on the Colorado as executive officer 
in '65 I was very young for my position. Now I 
was old for a captain who had just been promoted 
from commander, and at an age when many English 
officers receive the grade of rear-admiral, which I was 
not to have until I was sixty-one. In those days 
naval officers had reason for regretting their choice of 



158 GEORGE DEWEY 

a profession in which they had to see the officers of 
other nations enjoying the use of material for keep- 
ing up with professional progress which they them- 
selves wholly lacked. We knew that any one of the 
powers might require us to submit to humiliating 
exactions because we were incapable of defence by 
sea. The more earnest the effort of an officer to 
keep up with progress despite his handicaps, the 
more sensitive he was to them. It was easy then 
for an officer to drift along in his grade, losing in- 
terest and remaining in the navy only because he 
was too old to change his occupation. 

Yet the spirit of the Revolution, of 1812, and of 
Farragut and Annapolis did not die. It remained to 
develop the efficiency of the new navy, which was 
to have its trial in the Spanish War. We had a 
fine-spirited crew on board the Pensacola, and I 
often wondered how they were able to keep up their 
interest in such an old tub. When I visited the 
Mediterranean again it was on the Olympia, home- 
ward bound from the Orient, and it was a source of 
much satisfaction to be returning from a victory won 
with ships of our new navy, in view of the wounds 
to my sense of professional pride as captain of the 
Pensacola fourteen years previously. 

As we had no commerce or interests to protect 
in Europe, and were unable to protect them if we 
had, the presence of our squadron in European waters 
was perfunctory. It used to be a saying among the 




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BUILDING THE NEW NAVY 159 

officers that we went from port to port to meet our 
wives, who were travelling ashore, and to get letters 
from sweethearts. One could easily have reasoned 
that the Navy Department, knowing that we could 
be of no service as an instrument of warfare, meant 
us to enjoy a pleasantly conducted European holiday. 

In the summer of 1885 we avoided the heat of 
the Mediterranean by going to northern waters, 
where our ports of call included Stockholm and 
Copenhagen. At Stockholm, King Oscar of Sweden 
came on board. He had been a naval officer when 
called to the throne, and had the true sailor's fond- 
ness for the service. While taking a glass of wine 
and a piece of hardtack in the cabin and looking out 
on the gun-deck, he remarked to those about him: 
"This is the kind of kingdom for a man to have. I 
would rather command a man-of-war than be king 
of any country in the world." And turning to 
Commander Bridgeman, of the Kearsarge, he said: 
"Would not you, captain.?" Bridgeman answered, 
with a smile: "I have only tried the man-of-war, 
your Majesty." 

With the coming of winter we were back south, 
touching at whatever Mediterranean ports pleased 
the squadron commander, from Tangier to Alexan- 
dria and Villefranche to the Piraeus. At the Piraeus 
we were visited by King George of Greece. The 
evening before the Pensacola left the Piraeus I dined 
with the royal family, the only guest, and on leav- 



i6o GEORGE DEWEY 

ing after dinner the King accompanied me to the 
outer door and said: "The next time you come I 
hope you will be admiral." It was a source of much 
regret that I could not go to Greece with the Olympia 
on my way from Manila when I was an admiral, 
but it meant two weeks' quarantine, and I was there- 
fore obliged to forego the pleasure. We spent all 
the summer of '87 in the Mediterranean, and in Au- 
gust Rear-Admiral Franklin reached the retiring 
age. His flag was hauled down and that of Rear- 
Admiral James A. Greer was hoisted in its place. 

At Malta we saluted a flag comparatively a new- 
comer to the Mediterranean, and, indeed, to the 
Atlantic — the Japanese, flying from the Japanese 
cruiser Naniwa^ under command of Captain Ito, who 
was later the victorious commander-in-chief in the 
naval battle of the Yalu in the Chino-Japanese War. 
It was the Nanizva under Captain Togo, later the 
victor of Tsushima Straits, which, by sinking the 
transport Kozvshing at the outset of the Chino-Japan- 
ese War, precipitated an international incident. 

During this European cruise I had the oppor- 
tunity of studying the character of other navies and 
of judging of their relative efficiency, whether Brit- 
ish, French, Spanish, or Italian. Though service in 
European waters is delightful, I had developed the 
strong conviction that the maintenance of a Euro- 
pean squadron by the United States was poor naval 
policy. 



BUILDING THE NEW NAVY i6i 

About the year 1890, when I was chief of the 
bureau of equipment of the Navy Department, I 
was lunching one day with Secretary of the Navy 
Tracy. In the course of our conversation he said: 
*' Dewey, if you were secretary of the navy, what 
would you do with our ships in time of peace?'* 
Having already given this subject considerable 
thought, I replied: "I would bring all the ships 
home from the European station, the South Atlan- 
tic station, and the South Pacific station, then divide 
them into two parts; one part I would keep on the 
North Atlantic station, and the other in the Pacific. 
Of those in the Pacific, I would keep the larger part 
on the Pacific coast and the remainder in Asiatic 
waters." 

The secretary said, "Why?" 

"Well," I replied, "to begin with, we have no de- 
fence for our coasts except the navy [the coasts were 
not defended then by the army as they now are]; 
and in the second place, our officers and men would 
have an opportunity to become acquainted with 
our own coasts, which they are not able to do now; 
and above all, we would be spending the country's 
money at home and giving our people a chance to 
see something of the navy, which they can't do when 
it is scattered over all the world. We don't need to 
keep ships constantly on foreign stations — we have 
no interests there for them to protect, and there is 
really nothing for them to do. But if anything oc- 



i62 GEORGE DEWEY 

curs which makes it necessary for ships to visit 
foreign countries, let us send a squadron of four 
ships instead of one, for whatever is to be done can 
be accomphshed by four better than by one." 

This was a view that might not be welcome to 
officers or to their wives, who liked to see Europe, 
or to admirals who enjoyed the official honors that 
await a squadron upon entering a foreign harbor. 
But it was certainly in the interest of efficiency. 
If there must be junketing, let it be where our own 
people, who pay for the navy, rather than foreigners, 
might see the ships. Much junketing of any kind 
is a distraction that interferes with application and 
routine, and therefore with efficiency. 

One reason, perhaps, why so little was seen of 
our ships in home ports for twenty years after the 
Civil War, was that the sight of them might arouse 
the people's demand for a naval policy which did 
not represent a mere waste of money in keeping the 
relics in commission. The people might have in- 
sisted on better ships, and Congress had other uses 
for its funds, in the midst of increasing pension ex- 
penditures, than spending it on such a luxury as 
building men-of-war, which brought no return in 
patronage. I often wondered, during the '70's and 
'80' s, on whose shoulders outraged public opinion 
would have placed the responsibility if there had 
been war and consequent national disaster. There 
was only one alternative for the naval captain of a 



BUILDING THE NEW NAVY 163 

wooden ship in an engagement with an armor-clad, 
and that was to go down with his ship. Then, at 
least, no one could say that he had not done all that 
could be expected of him. 

Secretary Tracy did not act on my advice, for it 
was a little ahead of his time. But when I returned 
from Manila I had the pleasure of again expressing 
my views about the value of concentration, which 
was soon thereafter put into practice, not only at 
home but by foreign governments as well. If we 
send battle-ships to Europe to-day, it is only for a 
brief visit of courtesy. Naval experts have ceased 
to think in terms of single ships; they think in squad- 
rons and fleets. 

The return trip across the Atlantic with the Pen- 
sacola was my last experience on board a ship that 
carried sail, and my last sea-service until I was to 
hoist my commodore's broad pennant. The next 
eight years were spent in work which, to my mind, 
was the best sort of preparation for the duty that 
was to devolve upon me with the outbreak of the 
Spanish War. 

Having witnessed one abrupt transition in the 
navy in the Civil War, I was to witness another — 
this time to armored steel vessels with powerful 
engines and guns in turrets. We had allowed Eu- 
rope to have fifteen years the start of us, and at 
last were trying to catch up with her, while our 
ofl^cers had been only observers from the outside, 



i64 GEORGE DEWEY 

rather than participants in the evolution. Those 
of us who had not lost heart and who had kept in 
touch with progress by study and observation took 
up our tasks with avidity, while those who had been 
discouraged and content to drift, thinking that we 
should never have anything better than the Pensa- 
colas and Juniatas, found themselves timid about re- 
sponsibilities requiring technical knowledge in place 
of old-fashioned gunnery and seamanship. 

I now had sufficient rank to become a bureau 
chief, and was made chief of the bureau of equip- 
ment on July 20, 1889, succeeding my life-long friend 
the later Rear-Admiral W. S. Schley, at a time when 
we were busy with the equipment of the ships of 
our new navy, which was now entering upon a for- 
ward stage with our first battle-ships being planned. 
There was nothing showy about the four years' ser- 
vice that followed. The detail was not exacting, but 
vitally engrossing and important. In common with 
every other ambitious officer of the navy, I was feel- 
ing the pulse of the new spirit and problems. If, 
professionally, we had to smile a little when our pub- 
lic exulted over the sending of the White Squadron 
abroad in order to show our new navy to Europe, 
we knew that this squadron was only a pioneer of 
something better to come. For these small unar- 
mored cruisers were not built to fight with armored 
ships. 

However, we needed cruisers in order to have a 



BUILDING THE NEW NAVY 165 

fleet, and these were an excellent beginning, consid- 
ering how little we had to work with at first, either 
in appropriations or in ship-yards. Neither the pride 
of our public nor of our officers would have listened 
to the suggestion of going to the great ship-yards of 
Europe for our pioneer men-of-war. We must build 
them and arm them ourselves. It was better to 
make a modest start in a thorough manner than a too 
ambitious start with bad results. After the squad- 
ron of cruisers a squadron of armored fighting-ships 
was bound to come. 

When my four years were up as chief of the bu- 
reau of equipment I served for a year as a member 
of the light-house board, and in October, 1895, was 
made president of the board of inspection and sur- 
vey. This was a very important duty. All the new 
vessels which were then nearing completion were sub- 
ject to the board's inspection and approval. Ours 
was the responsibility that the construction from 
stem to stern was sound and that the builders kept 
the letter of the specifications. By this time the 
country had become interested in its navy. Any 
failure of our new battle-ships to come up to the 
mark was bound to excite public suspicion, if not 
to develop a scandal. With the board rested the 
final word of acceptance of any ship after she was 
finished. 

Thus it was that I presided at the trials of the 
Texas, Maine, Iowa, Indiana, and Massachusetts — 



i66 GEORGE DEWEY 

all the battle-ships except the Oregon which were to 
demolish the Spanish squadron at Santiago — and also 
the armored cruiser Brooklyn and, among the unar- 
mored cruisers, the Nashville, Wilmington, and Hel- 
ena, and a number of torpedo-boats. I knew the 
ships, how they were built, and what was to be ex- 
pected of them, and I felt that if I had not kept up 
with the progress of my profession it was not for 
want of application or opportunity. 

On May 23, 1896, I had received my promotion 
from captain to commodore, but I remained for an- 
other year as president of the board of inspection 
and survey, while my rank entitled me to the com- 
mand of a squadron as soon as there was a vacancy. 



CHAPTER XIII 

IN COMMAND OF THE ASIATIC SQUADRON 

It had been a rule with me never to try to bring 
political influence to bear on the Navy Department 
in my favor and never to join any group of officers 
in a common effort for bettering their position per- 
haps at the expense of other ofiicers, not to say at 
the expense of the efficiency of the service. When 
the question of a successor to Acting Rear-Admiral 
McNair in command of the Asiatic Squadron arose, 
in the summer and fall of 1897, I knew that Com- 
modore John A. Howell and myself were being con- 
sidered for the position. 

The most influential officer in the distribution of 
assignments was Rear-Admiral A. S. Crowninshield, 
chief of the bureau of navigation, and a pronounced 
bureaucrat, with whose temperament and methods 
I had little more sympathy than had the majority 
of the officers of the navy at that time. He would 
hardly recommend me to any command; and his 
advice had great weight with John D. Long, who 
was then secretary of the navy. 

Theodore Roosevelt was assistant secretary of 
the navy. He was impatient of red tape, and had 
a singular understanding both of the importance of 



167 



i68 GEORGE DEWEY 

preparedness for war and of striking quick blows in 
rapid succession once war was begun. With the 
enthusiastic candor which characterizes him, he de- 
clared that I ought to have the Asiatic Squadron. 
He asked me if I had any poHtical influence. I ex- 
pressed a natural disinclination to use it. He agreed 
with the correctness of my view as an officer, but 
this was a situation where it must be used in self- 
defence. One letter from an influential source in 
favor of Howell had already been received by the 
department. 

"I want you to go," Mr. Roosevelt declared. 
"You are the man who will be equal to the emer- 
gency if one arises. Do you know any senators?" 

My heart was set on having the Asiatic Squadron. 
It seemed to me that we were inevitably drifting into 
a war with Spain. In command of an efficient force 
in the Far East, with a free hand to act in conse- 
quence of being so far away from Washington, I 
could strike promptly and successfully at the Span- 
ish force in the Philippines. 

"Senator Proctor is from my State," I said to 
Mr. Roosevelt. " He is an old friend of the family, 
and my father was of service to him when he was a 
young man." 

"You could not have a better sponsor," Mr. 
Roosevelt exclaimed. "Lose no time in having him 
speak a word for you." 

I went immediately to see Senator Proctor, who 



COMMAND OF ASIATIC SQUADRON 169 

was delighted that I had mentioned the matter to 
him. That very day he called on President Mc- 
Kinley and received the promise of the appointment 
before he left the White House. 

When I next met Crowninshield he told me that, 
although I was to have the appointment — a fact 
which did not seem to please him any too well — 
Secretary Long was indignant because I had used 
political influence to obtain it. I went in at once 
to see Mr. Long, and said to him: 

"Mr. Secretary, I understand that you are dis- 
pleased with me for having used Influence to secure 
command of the Asiatic Squadron. I did so be- 
cause it was the only way of offsetting Influence that 
was being exerted on another officer's behalf." 

"You are in error, commodore," said Mr. Long. 
"No influence has been brought to bear on behalf 
of any one else." 

Only a few hours later, however, Mr. Long sent 
me a note in which he said that he had just found 
that a letter had been received at the department 
which he had seen for the first time. It had arrived 
while he was absent from the ofl[ice and while Mr. 
Roosevelt was acting secretary, and had only just 
been brought to his attention. 

An order issued on October 21, 1897, detached 
me from duty as president of the board of Inspec- 
tion and survey on November 30, with directions 
that I should take passage to Japan in a Pacific 



lyo GEORGE DEWEY 

Mail steamer sailing from San Francisco on Decem- 
ber 7, and report to Acting Rear-Admiral McNair 
on board the flag-ship Olympia as his relief. 

In the month that I had remaining in Washing- 
ton I studied all the charts and descriptions of the 
Philippine Islands that I could procure and put 
aside many books about the Far East to read in the 
course of my journey across the continent and the 
Pacific. At that time, not one man in ten in Wash- 
ington thought that we should ever come to the 
actual crisis of war with Spain. 

Whether there was likelihood of war or not, it 
was my duty to make sure that the squadron was 
properly prepared for any emergency and that not 
a single precaution was left to chance. Inquiry about 
the quantity of ammunition in the squadron devel- 
oped the fact that there was not even a peace allow- 
ance. Although a further supply had been ordered, 
no one had seemed to think it necessary to facili- 
tate its shipment, thanks largely to the red tape of 
official conservatism. 

Naturally it was my business to request that it 
should be forwarded immediately. The department 
informed me that the trans-Pacific steamers would 
not receive it, that no merchant-vessel could be found 
to take it, and that it would have to await the sailing 
of the U. S. S. Charleston, then under repair and not 
likely to be in commission for six months. Vigor- 
ously supported by Mr. Roosevelt, I finally sue- 



COMMAND OF ASIATIC SQUADRON 171 

ceeded in having an order issued that the Concordy 
then fitting out at the Mare Island Navy Yard for 
service on the Asiatic station, should transport as 
much of the supply as her limited carrying capacity 
would permit. 

When I reached San Francisco there was time 
before sailing to visit the Mare Island Navy Yard 
in order to see in person that the ammunition was 
being put on board the Concord and to impress upon 
the commandant of the yard the absolute necessity 
of loading her with every pound that could possibly 
be carried. I pointed out that by touching at Hon- 
olulu en route for supplies much valuable stowage 
room that must otherwise be devoted to provisions 
and stores could be given up to ammunition, while 
certain stores which ordinarily would be shipped 
from San Francisco might just as well be procured on 
arrival in Japan. Commander Asa Walker, of the 
Concord, actively entered into the spirit of my wishes. 

In consequence a small vessel of only seventeen 
hundred tons displacement was able to carry about 
one-half of the total supply, or nearly thirty-five tons. 
The remainder (some thirty-seven tons) was shipped 
by the old sloop-of-war Mohican to Honolulu, and 
there transferred to the cruiser Baltimorey when, with 
the accelerating rush of events, it was decided, the 
following March, to send her to reinforce the Asi- 
atic Squadron. As a matter of fact, she reached 
Hong Kong only forty-eight hours before our ves- 



172 GEORGE DEWEY 

sels left that port in obedience to the Queen's proc- 
lamation of neutrality, and the ammunition was 
transferred to the other vessels of the squadron in 
Mirs Bay on the day of the declaration of war. 

Even with the total amount thus sent, the whole 
supply on hand when the ships went into action in 
Manila Bay was inferior to the storage capacity of 
their magazines and shell-rooms, being, according to 
the calculation of the officers of the squadron, only 
about sixty per cent of the full capacity. Authorita- 
tive statements have been made to the effect that 
the squadron was amply supplied with ammunition. 
It was not even fully supplied, let alone having any 
reserve. 

Therefore, considering that I was operating seven 
thousand miles from the nearest United States navy 
yard, and considering the possibility of a prolonged 
engagement with the Spanish squadron, such appre- 
hensions as I had when we left Mirs Bay were not 
confined entirely to the hazards of action. It is not 
for me to criticise the department, but only to state 
a fact and to repeat that there can be no neglect so 
inexcusable as that which sends any modern squadron 
into battle not only without its magazines and shell- 
rooms filled, but without a large reserve of ammuni- 
tion within reach. However, even if we had had 
less ammunition, we should have gone into Manila 
Bay; for such were our orders and such was the 
only thing to do. 



COMMAND OF ASIATIC SQUADRON 173 

When I was assigned to the command the num- 
ber of flag-officers allowed by law was six rear-ad- 
mirals and ten commodores; but in order to give 
our fleet commanders in foreign waters a position 
commensurate with the dignity of the country they 
represented, it had been for many years the unvary- 
ing custom that every commodore ordered as com- 
mander-in-chief of the Asiatic Squadron should hold 
the acting rank of rear-admiral from the moment 
that his flag was hoisted. So long, indeed, had this 
practice been followed that it had come to be re- 
garded as almost a right. It was a surprising in- 
novation when Secretary Long informed me that in 
my case I was to hoist the broad pennant of a com- 
modore and not the flag of a rear-admiral. 

No one could have known better than Rear- 
Admiral Crowninshield, Secretary Long's chief ad- 
viser, how subordinate this would make my position 
in all intercourse with the squadron commanders 
and officials of other nations, and particularly in 
case any necessity for combined international action 
should arise. 

This was one of those little pin-pricking slights 
which are bound to be personally unpleasant to any 
officer of long service. But, as one of my friends 
pointed out, by way of a sentimental compensation, 
the only one of my predecessors who had won great 
name by his action in the Far East also held the 
rank of commodore. This was Matthew C. Perry, 



174 GEORGE DEWEY 

the masterful diplomatist who opened up Japan to 
civilization by mingling suavity with forcefulness In 
such a manner that he Is to-day almost as much ac- 
claimed in Japan as if he were a national hero. After 
all, If Manila were won it did not much matter 
whether it were won under a commodore's or a rear- 
admiral's emblem. 

In the harbor of Nagasaki, Japan, on January 3, 
1898, I took over the command from Acting Rear- 
Admlral F. B. McNaIr, and hoisted my broad pen- 
nant on the Olympia. My staff was Lieutenant T. 
F. Brumby as flag-lieutenant and Ensign H. H. 
Caldwell as flag-secretary, with Ensign F. B. Up- 
ham as aide. Brumby and Caldwell had accom- 
panied me from home, and both remained with me 
constantly until my return to America. The squad- 
ron at that time was hardly a formidable force for 
war purposes, consisting of the cruiser Olympia (flag- 
ship), the Boston (a small cruiser), the Petrel (gun- 
boat), and the antiquated Monocacy, a paddle-wheel 
steamer of the Civil War period, fit only for river 
service. But the crews were mostly long-service 
men and their spirit was fine. 

A long ofiiclal letter transmitting the files and 
records of the command to Its new commander-in- 
chief was interesting. In that It contained no hint of 
the pregnant events then Impending. The uneasy 
state of affairs in Korea, some anti-missionary riots 
in China, the seizure of Kiau Chau Bay by the Ger- 



COMMAND OF ASIATIC SQUADRON 175 

mans one month earlier, the attitude of the Japan- 
ese, and some minor international matters were men- 
tioned; but in no manner was there any forecast 
given of the work in which the squadron would soon 
be so vitally interested. 

The only reference to the Philippines was a short 
paragraph, to the effect that "for some time the 
newspapers have contained accounts of a rebellion 
in progress in the Philippines"; but that "no official 
information has been received in relation thereto, 
and no information of any sort that shows American 
interests to be affected." 

In fact, at that time the Philippines were to us 
a terra incognita. No ship of our service had been 
there for years. When, after my appointment as 
commander of the Asiatic Squadron, I sought in- 
formation on the subject in Washington, I found 
that the latest official report relative to the Philip- 
pines on file in the office of naval intelligence bore 
the date of 1876. 

Mr. Charles B. Harris, recently appointed from 
Indiana, an energetic and delightful man, was consul 
at Nagasaki. I recollect that Mrs. Harris, who was 
a strong advocate of peace and much interested in 
missions, asked me why we needed to maintain ex- 
pensive men-of-war and their officers and men. I 
laughingly told her that sometimes missionaries found 
their lives in danger and asked for protection; again, 
our country had been known to go to war in the past 
and might in the future, in which event our squad- 



176 GEORGE DEWEY 

ron was supposed to represent us against the enemy 
on the seas. After the battle, in answer to Mr. 
Harris's letter of congratulation, I said that I trusted 
that Mrs. Harris now knew why we maintained a 
navy, to which he cleverly replied that not only did 
she know, but so did more than eighty million other 
Americans. 

A custom of each new commander-in-chief of our 
Asiatic Squadron to ask for an audience with the 
Emperor of Japan had latterly fallen into neglect. 
The Japanese, in view of the part that Commodore 
Perry had played, had remarked an omission which 
so proud and so sensitive a court would be the last 
to overlook. It seemed to me important to observe 
this and every other amenity which in any degree 
would tend to retain the good-will of a friendly na- 
tion. Therefore, I requested the audience without 
delay and proceeded to Yokohama, where I expected 
the Concord at an early date with her precious cargo 
of ammunition. 

Accompanied by my personal and fleet staffs I 
was received first by the Emperor and afterward by 
the Empress. These receptions, which were very 
cordial, had little of an oriental character. If we 
except the surroundings, the decorations of the pal- 
ace, and the costumes and occasional genuflections of 
the servants, the scene might as well have been laid 
at the court of Berlin, St. Petersburg, or any Eu- 
ropean capital as in that of Tokio. His Majesty 
was in military dress in the midst of a brilliant suite 



COMMAND OF ASIATIC SQUADRON 177 

of aids, court chamberlains, and other court func- 
tionaries in occidental uniforms, while the Empress 
was in a Parisian costume and attended by a single 
maid of honor, who served as interpreter. 

Both their Majesties spoke in Japanese. But 
while the Emperor's interpreter translated his re- 
marks in an ordinary tone of voice, the Empress's 
interpreter never addressed her above a whisper. 
What a contrast was my reception to that of the 
other American commodore who had cast anchor in 
the Gulf of Yeddo forty-four years previously! One 
commodore was regarded with an apprehensive con- 
sternation, only rivalled in degree by the cataclysmic 
changes in beliefs, customs, and policy of which he 
was the precursor; while the other was welcomed with 
all the amenities of modern times. The one, after 
vexatious delays, was allowed to meet the represent- 
atives of an invisible and impotent Mikado; while 
the other was openly received by a constitutional 
monarch. The one landed in a country secluded in 
insular oriental isolation, while the other debarked 
in a thriving port open to the commerce of the world, 
from which he travelled to Tokio by rail. Of all 
the changes which the world has seen in the last 
century, none has been so phenomenal as that so 
splendidly accomplished by Japan since the memo- 
rable visit of Commodore Perry. 

This audience with the Emperor established pleas- 
ant relations with the court and many Japanese offi- 



178 GEORGE DEWEY 

cials, while the good-will of the Japanese government 
was shown by the discretion and courtesy of the 
Japanese Navy, which was always represented by one 
or more vessels in Manila Bay during the tedious 
and trying days of the blockade in the interval be- 
tween the annihilation of the Spanish squadron and 
the occupation of the city by our troops. 

The Concord arrived in Yokohama on February 
9. On the loth she transferred her ammunition, 
and on the nth the Olympia sailed for Hong Kong, 
to which port the Petrel had already been ordered. 
My decision to take the squadron to Hong Kong was 
entirely on my own initiative, without any hint what- 
soever from the department that hostilities might 
be expected. It was evident that in case of emer- 
gency Hong Kong was the most advantageous posi- 
tion from which to move to the attack. 

The news of the Maine disaster, which occurred 
February 15 (February 16 in the eastern hemi- 
sphere), was known in Hong Kong when the Olym- 
pia arrived there on February 17. But official 
notification did not reach the flag-ship until the 
following day. Its wording shows how carefully our 
government was moving in a moment of such in- 
tense excitement: 

"Dewey, Hong Kong: 

"Maine destroyed at Havana February 15th by accident. 
The President directs all colors to be half masted until further 
orders. Inform vessels under your command by telegraph. 

"Long." 



COMMAND OF ASIATIC SQUADRON 179 

Though President McKinley was still confident 
that war could be averted, active naval measures 
had already begun, so far as navy-yard work upon 
ships and initial inquiries with regard to the pur- 
chase of war material were concerned. But the first 
real step was taken on February 25, when telegraphic 
instructions were sent to the Asiatic, European, and 
South Atlantic Squadrons to rendezvous at certain 
convenient points where, should war break out, they 
would be most available. 

The message to the Asiatic Squadron bore the 
signature of that assistant secretary who had seized 
the opportunity, while acting secretary, to hasten 
preparations for a conflict which was inevitable. As 
Mr. Roosevelt reasoned, precautions would cost little 
in time of peace and would be invaluable in case of 
war. His cablegram was as follows: 

"Washington, February 25, '98. 
"Dewey, Hong Kong: 

"Order the squaaron except the Monocacy to Hong Kong. 
Keep full of coal. In the event of declaration of war Spain, 
your duty will be to see that the Spanish Squadron does not 
leaye the Asiatic coast, and then offensive operations in Phil- 
ippine Islands. Keep Olympia until further orders. 

"Roosevelt." 

(The reference to keeping the Olympia until fur- 
ther orders was due to the fact that I had been noti- 
fied that she would soon be recalled to the United 
States.) 

I despatched a cablegram to expedite the arrival 



i8o GEORGE DEWEY 

of the Boston and the Concord and one to the United 
States consul at Manila, in which I asked him for 
information concerning the fortifications, submarine 
mines, and general defences of Manila Bay, and to 
keep a close watch upon the movements of the 
Spanish squadron. Meanwhile, with my staff, I 
went into exhaustive consideration of the grave ques- 
tion of a supply of coal, provisions, and other neces- 
saries for a squadron seven thousand miles distant 
from any home base, which would result from a proc- 
lamation of neutrality by the various governments. 
Although no instructions to such effect had been 
received from the department, discreet negotiations 
for the purchase of supply steamers with full cargoes 
of coal were initiated. 

The Boston and the Concord soon arrived, as did 
also the Raleigh, sent as a reinforcement from the 
Mediterranean; while the antiquated Monocacy was 
laid up at Shanghai and a part of her officers and 
crew were transferred to the ships at Hong Kong. 
These vessels were now carefully overhauled and 
docked, kept constantly full of coal and provisions, 
their men thoroughly drilled, machinery put in prime 
condition ready for moving at a moment's notice, and 
preparations to land superfluous material and wood- 
work perfected, while I aimed to take every care in 
the inspection of ships and crews and to use all the 
knowledge of my experience to improve the effi- 
ciency of the whole for battle. 



COMMAND OF ASIATIC SQUADRON i8i 

Aside from the crisis of our relations with Spain, 
it was a critical period in international relations in 
the Far East. Germany, in forwarding her ambi- 
tions for colonial expansion, had just taken Kiau 
Chau as a punitive measure for the killing of mis- 
sionaries, thus bringing the province of Shantung 
under the sphere of her influence. England, which 
had occupied Wei-hai-wei, was looking askance at 
Russia, who was fortifying herself at Port Arthur. 
The dismemberment of China seemed imminent to 
many observers. Hong Kong harbor was crowded 
with men-of-war; there was a feeling of restlessness 
and uncertainty in the air. 

A feature of the imperial German policy at this 
time was the Kaiser's sending of his brother Prince 
Henry of Prussia to the Far East, flying his flag as 
a rear-admiral and second in command of the Ger- 
man squadron. The prince arrived at Hong Kong 
on March 8. He was then under forty years of age, 
vigorous, a charming companion, and a thorough 
sailor who had really worked up through all the 
grades from midshipman to rear-admiral. Although 
brought up in the strict forms of court etiquette, he 
was delighted to cut adrift from conventionalism 
whenever circumstances would permit. 

Soon after the arrival of the German squadron a 
curious international question arose. Some of the 
German seamen came on board the Olympia to pay 
a friendly visit to members of our crew. Among 



i82 GEORGE DEWEY 

them was a seaman of the cruiser Gefio7ij who was 
recognized by the officer of the deck and by others 
of our personnel as a deserter from one of our own 
ships. As he wore the German uniform and belonged 
to the crew of a German man-of-war, he could not 
well be arrested. But when the fact that he was a 
deserter had been proved indisputably he was or- 
dered to leave the ship. A correspondence with the 
German rear-admiral ensued, in which our demand 
for the surrender of the deserter was met by the as- 
sertion that he was a German subject and a seaman 
in the German Navy, and in neither capacity would 
he be given up. 

Owing to the presence of a European royal prince, 
which was rare in the Far East, there was much 
entertaining by the officials of the British crown 
colony of Hong Kong and much interchange of hospi- 
talities among the ships. Among the numerous 
dinners was one given by Prince Henry on board of 
his flag-ship, the Deutsckland, when the acting gov- 
ernor, Major-General W. Black, the commandant of 
the British naval station at Hong Kong, the com- 
modore of the American squadron, and the captains 
of several British, American, and Russian men-of- 
war were the principal guests. 

As is customary on such occasions, toward the 
end of the dinner Prince Henry proposed, in succes- 
sion, the health of the heads of the various nationali- 
ties represented, the toasts being drunk standing and 



COMMAND OF ASIATIC SQUADRON 183 

the Deutschland' s band at the same moment playing 
the appropriate national air. The usual procedure 
is that, after a toast to his own sovereign, the host 
proposes, in turn, the health of the ruler or chief mag- 
istrate of each country represented at the table, 
these toasts being given in the order of rank of the 
senior officer present. 

In this case the first toast was naturally one to 
the health of the German Emperor, then one to the 
Queen of England ; and though the next should have 
been to the President of the United States because 
we had a squadron commander present. Prince Henry 
made it to the Czar of Russia, represented by a 
captain, and placed the President of the United 
States at the end of the list. With the toast to the 
President the band played "Hail, Columbia." 

For many years in our service confusion existed 
as to the identity of the national air of the United 
States. This was due to the assignment by navy 
regulations of one air, "The Star-Spangled Banner," 
to be played at morning colors, and another, "Hail, 
Columbia," at evening colors. Characteristic in- 
stances of the embarrassment, in the exchange of 
international courtesies, which naturally resulted 
from this circumstance had frequently come to my 
notice. Npw, as the guests were reseating themselves 
after this toast, I reminded the prince that "Hail, 
Columbia," was not our national air. 

"What is it.?" his Highness asked. 



i84 GEORGE DEWEY 

"The Star-Spangled Banner," I told him; and 
added that I should be happy to send him a copy. 
I despatched one the same night, and it was played 
by the Deutschland's band at colors the very next 
morning. 

It was my good fortune some years later to be 
instrumental in permanently eliminating all confu- 
sion to officers on this subject. Through a personal 
appeal to President Roosevelt I had an order, dated 
April 22, 1904, issued by the then acting secretary 
of the navy, Charles H. Darling, directing that 
thereafter "The Star-Spangled Banner" should be 
played at both morning and evening colors, and 
should be regarded, for the purposes of the navy, as 
the national air. Subsequently it was adopted both 
in the army and the navy regulations. 

The relegation of the President by Prince Henry 
to the last toast was not a thing to be considered as 
a personal matter, but as one affecting the nation 
and its head, whom I represented, and also as ex- 
pressive of an attitude not altogether uncommon at 
that time with some European powers. This atti- 
tude I felt I could not overlook. Therefore the 
American officers were conspicuous by their absence 
thereafter at entertainments given at Hong Kong in 
Prince Henry's honor, until at one of them the prince 
remarked that no Americans were present, and asked 
his hostess the cause. 

"It is one that your Royal Highness should be 



COMMAND OF ASIATIC SQUADRON 185 

aware of," she replied. When he pleaded ignorance 
she told him the reason why I had taken offence. 

The next morning, unattended and in citizen's 
clothes, he came on board the Olympia to call, and 
with fine candor expressed his regret for an error 
in which there had been no intentional slight and 
which was due to his lack of experience in such mat- 
ters. After that we saw a great deal of each other, 
and neither of us hesitated to express our convic- 
tions freely in our talks. Upon one occasion, in dis- 
cussing the possible outcome of our complications 
with Spain, Prince Henry remarked that he did not 
believe that the powers would ever allow the United 
States to annex Cuba. 

"We do not wish to annex Cuba, your Highness," 
I answered, "but we cannot suffer the horrible con- 
dition of affairs which exists at present in that island 
at our very doors to continue, and we are bound to 
put a stop to it." 

"And what are you after .? W^hat does your coun- 
try want?" the prince asked jokingly on another 
occasion, in referring to the general scramble for a 
foothold in the Far East. 

"Oh, we need only a bay," I said jokingly in 
return, having in mind that this was all the Germans 
said that they wanted at Kiau Chau. It did not 
then occur to me that we should be taking Manila 
Bay permanently. 



CHAPTER XTV 
FINAL PREPARATIONS FOR WAR 

Mr. O. F. Williams, our consul at Manila, dili- 
gently responded to my request for information, and 
remained at his post in spite of threats and warn- 
ings that his life was in danger. Indeed, he did not 
obey when he had been three times cabled by his 
government to leave, and when he had been noti- 
fied by the Governor-General of the Philippines that 
his safety could no longer be assured, as a mob or 
an assassin might kill him at any hour. Only upon 
receiving a peremptory request from me did he 
finally withdraw from his post and start for Hong 
Kong on April 23d. 

The information which we had received from him, 
while naturally not technical, was highly valuable. 
Through him we learned of the mounting of six new 
guns on Corregidor, at the entrance to Manila Bay, 
of the number of men-of-war and other vessels in 
the bay, of feverish activity upon the fortifications, 
and the state of the struggle of the Spanish with the 
insurgents. His copious cables and letters included 
all the extravagant rumors rife in the streets of the 

city. There was a persistent one of the imminent 

186 



FINAL PREPARATIONS FOR WAR 187 

attack by the American squadron, another of the 
coahtlon of all Europe against the United States, 
and still another that our government was beseech- 
ing the Pope to intercede and save us from destruc- 
tion by the army and navy of Spain, and this last 
was deemed so authentic that it was ordered to be 
publicly proclaimed in all the Philippine churches. 

In the midst of such canards, which received cre- 
dence on all sides, the poor consul was at times much 
bewildered. However, we found that we had under- 
estimated the resources of the defence. The number 
of vessels at Cavite was incorrect, and no report had 
been made of the twenty-odd small gun-boats in 
Philippine waters which by initiative and daring 
might have been utilized to make the entering of 
Manila Bay a hazardous undertaking. Moreover, 
there had been no proper enumeration of the shore 
batteries with their seventeen heavy rifled guns at 
the mouth of the bay and forty other guns mounted 
in the Manila and Cavite fortifications. 

On March 11, in cabling to Washington a re- 
quest that the two vital essentials, ammunition and 
coal, should be sent from San Francisco, I had stated 
that all the good coal in the market had been pur- 
chased by other governments, and it was important 
to provide for a fresh supply. In answer. Secretary 
Long authorized me to contract for the delivery of 
five thousand tons direct from England, if necessary; 
but it was not until I made another inquiry by cable, 



i88 GEORGE DEWEY 

on March 21, that I received any news as to a fur- 
ther supply of ammunition. Now I learned officially 
for the first time that the Baltimore would reinforce 
my squadron, bringing the ammunition which was 
at Honolulu; and on April 3 came the definite word 
that she had left Honolulu for Hong Kong. The 
Baltimore was a most welcome addition to my force, 
though without her I had been quite ready to enter 
Manila Bay. 

Meanwhile, the coal which had been contracted 
for was on its way from Cardiff in the steamer Nan- 
shan. On April 4 I sent a cable to the department 
suggesting that the Nanshan should be purchased 
before the outbreak of hostilities. This idea had 
occurred to the department at the same time, and 
its cable on the subject crossed my own. It also 
authorized the purchase of another supply vessel 
and placed at my service the revenue-cutter McCiil- 
loch, which, fortunately, happened to be at Singa- 
pore, en route to San Francisco. By this time our 
government was losing its confidence in maintaining 
peace, for in his cable of April 5 Secretary Long had 
said: "War may be declared. Condition very crit- 
ical." 

Much credit is due to Pay-Inspector D. A. Smith, 
who had charge of securing supplies and arranging 
the contracts for coal. His energy, tact, and busi- 
ness qualifications not only provided for the present 
exigencies, but made ample preparation for future 



FINAL PREPARATIONS FOR WAR 189 

supplies which might be obtained in spite of the in- 
ternational Hmitation on purchases once war was 
begun. Assistance which would be dependent en- 
tirely on the friendship and attitude of the British 
government was not sufficient surety for a squadron 
seven thousand miles from home. In Chinese ports 
we might have a freedom that we could not have in 
the crown colony of Hong Kong, which was under 
the rule of a great, responsible European nation, 
which would immediately be held accountable by 
Spain if any leniency in enforcing the laws of neu- 
trality should favor the United States. 

Accordingly, the commander of the old Monoc- 
acy, stationed at Shanghai, was set secretly to work. 
Through the medium of an efficient Chinese compra- 
dor this officer soon perfected arrangements for an 
immediate or a future supply of coal or provisions, 
independent of international complications. An iso- 
lated locality for receiving these supplies, and for 
making temporary repairs, if necessary, to any ship 
of the squadron injured in battle, was selected. In 
a critical article on the Spanish War so able a strate- 
gist as Admiral Luce said: 

"The defeat of the American Squadron at Manila Bay, 
May I St, 1898, would have been a disaster the extent of which 
it would be difficult to compute. Failure to gain a decisive 
victory even would have been almost as bad as actual defeat, 
for the American commander had actually no base to fall back 
upon, no point d'appui. The risks taken were enormous but 
fully justified by the event." 



I90 GEORGE DEWEY 

His conclusion was only natural, from the infor- 
mation he had at hand, because I had not commu- 
nicated to the department our arrangements, which 
were quite obvious precautions to us who were on 
the spot. We appreciated that so loosely organized 
a national entity as the Chinese Empire could not 
enforce the neutrality laws. 

In this connection I received rather a surprising 
cable on April 2 from Secretary Long. He reminded 
me of the well-known international law, that after 
the outbreak of hostilities further supplies and coal 
could not be obtained at the neutral ports, except 
to enable me to proceed home. He concluded as 
follows: "Only the Japanese ports are available as 
storehouse. Should advise storehouse at Nagasaki, 
Japan, for the base of supplies or supply steamer to 
accompany the squadron." 

If any nation in the world would be scrupulous 
in the enforcement of every detail of neutrality it 
would be Japan. It hardly seemed possible that we 
could have made some secret diplomatic arrange- 
ment with her of which I had not been fully advised. 
Indeed, such an arrangement was a little too good 
to be true to any one who knew the Far East. 

In order to be sure of my ground, I sent this cable 
to the American minister to Japan: "Am informed, 
in case of war with Spain, Japanese ports can be 
used by this squadron as base for supplies and coal. 
Is this correct.^" Minister Buck sent the following 



FINAL PREPARATIONS FOR WAR 191 

in return: ''Ports cannot be used as base for sup- 
plies and coal. Ships homeward bound could get 
them. Japan would concede nothing beyond strict 
neutrality." 

If I had acted on the secretary's advice, not only 
should we have given a sensitive nation offence, but 
our squadron might have suffered a good deal of in- 
convenience. Having Minister Buck's cable, I knew 
that we were right in thinking that there was no de- 
pendence for a base except on Chinese ports. In 
answer to the first inquiry made of the commanding 
officer of the Monocacy at Shanghai he said that he 
could obtain the supplies, but that there would be 
international complications in time of war. I told 
him that international complications, where the 
China of that day was concerned, were a secondary 
consideration and to go ahead. 

In accordance with the department's consent I 
bought the steamer Zafiro as a supply ship, but I 
did not comply with the department's suggestion to 
man and arm the Zafiro and the Nanshan. This 
would have given them the status of American naval 
vessels and therefore made them subject to the 
restrictions of neutrality laws, not to mention that 
they could have been made of no real value as fight- 
ing units. We registered them as American mer- 
chant-steamers, and by clearing them for Guam, 
then almost a mythical country, we had a free hand 
in sending them to English, Japanese, or Chinese 



192 GEORGE DEWEY 

ports to get any supplies we might need on the way 
to Guam. Their EngHsh crews, including the offi- 
cers, with the spirit of true seamen, agreed not only 
to stand by their ships, but welcomed the prospect 
of an adventurous cruise. In order to have some 
one aboard who understood naval tactics and signals, 
an officer and four men from the squadron were de- 
tailed for each vessel. 

Now, with all preparations complete, we awaited 
the arrival of the Baltimore. Had the morale of the 
squadron for the next two weeks not been of the 
highest standard, it might have been affected by the 
reiterated statements of the Hong Kong papers that 
the strength of the forts at Manila and the extent 
of the mine fields at the entrance to the bay in con- 
nection with the strength of the Spanish naval forces 
made Manila quite impregnable. The prevailing 
impression among even the military class in the 
colony was that our squadron was going to certain 
destruction. 

In the Hong Kong Club it was not possible to 
get bets, even at heavy odds, that our expedition 
would be a success, and this in spite of a friendly 
predilection among the British in our favor. I was 
told, after our officers had been entertained at dinner 
by a British regiment, that the universal remark 
among our hosts was to this effect: "A fine set of 
fellows, but unhappily we shall never see them 
again." 



FINAL PREPARATIONS FOR WAR 193 

Every day of our last week at Hong Kong brought 
some new development. On the 17th the McCul- 
loch arrived; on the 19th the ships were painted 
war color; on the 21st Washington cabled that war 
had not yet been declared, but might be at any mo- 
ment; on the 22d we were delighted by the sight of 
the Baltimore steaming into the harbor; and on the 
23 d I received a letter from the acting Governor of 
Hong Kong, Major-General Black, enclosing an of- 
ficial promulgation of the war neutrality proclama- 
tion, and requesting that our squadron should leave 
the harbor not later than 4 p. m., April 25. 

We had arranged to have a dock empty and 
ready to receive the Baltimore immediately she ar- 
rived, and the vitally important work of cleaning 
and painting her under-water body was accomplished 
before the expiration of the time limit set by the 
governor. As a passenger on an incoming Pacific 
Mail steamer came Commander B. P. Lamberton, 
who had been detailed by the department to com- 
mand the Boston. But Captain Frank Wildes, of 
the Boston^ was not the sort to give up his com- 
mand on the eve of an engagement without a protest. 

The matter was easily arranged to the satisfac- 
tion of both by having Lamberton take up his duties 
on the flag-ship as my chief of staff. Thus I secured 
the aid of a most active and accomplished officer at a 
time when there was positive need of his services; but 
not until later did I realize how much I owed to the 



194 GEORGE DEWEY 

sympathetic companionship of Lamberton's sunny, 
hopeful, and tactful disposition. 

For other reasons Lamberton's arrival was most 
fortunate. Both of the senior officers of the flag-ship 
Olympia were so out of health as to be barely fit for 
routine duty, while neither was equal to undergoing 
the fatigue of an active campaign. The executive 
officer was therefore invalided home and his place 
taken by Lieutenant C. P. Rees, of the Monocacy. 
Ill as he was, it was not in my heart to refuse the 
request of gallant Captain Gridley to remain in com- 
mand. In a month after the victory he, too, was 
invalided home and died in Japan on the way. 

Since April 15 repeated cables to Consul Williams 
at Manila advised him to come to Hong Kong. But 
it was not until the 23d that the British consul at 
Manila wired me that Williams had safely started 
on the Esmeralda. It was this news that led me to 
cable to Washington that I should go to Mirs Bay 
to await his arrival. On the 24th the Bosto7i, Co7i- 
cord, Petrel, McCulloch, the collier Nanshan, and the 
supply ship Zafiro left Hong Kong for this anchor- 
age, which was some thirty miles away. The next 
day, Monday, April 25, the Olympia, Raleigh, and 
Baltimore followed. The Raleigh was crawling under 
one engine in consequence of a break-down in a cir- 
culating pump. This was repaired that night at the 
Kowloon dock-yard, opposite Hong Kong, and was 
promptly on board the ship the next morning. 



FINAL PREPARATIONS FOR WAR 195 

The ammunition brought by the Baltimore was 
distributed among the ships, which were thoroughly 
cleared for action. The crews were exercised again 
at sub-caiibre target practice and battle quarters, 
and the squadron finally put upon a war footing 
with regard to armed watches, suppression of night- 
lights, and other details. Meanwhile, we kept up 
communication with Hong Kong by means of a tug 
chartered for the purpose, and Flag-Secretary Cald- 
well remained in the city until the squadron left 
Mirs Bay to keep in telegraphic touch with Wash- 
ington. Meanwhile, Mr. J. L. Stickney, a graduate 
of Annapolis, who had resigned from the service to 
enter journalism, had appeared and asked permis- 
sion to come on board for the battle. As the Olym- 
pia was short-handed for junior officers I decided to 
make him my volunteer aide, while Caldwell was as- 
signed to the guns. 

At 12.15 P- M., on the 25th, came this cable from 
Secretary Long: 

"War has commenced between the United States and Spain. 
Proceed at once to Philippine Islands. Commence operations 
particularly against the Spanish fleet. You must capture 
vessels or destroy. Use utmost endeavor." 

We were ready to obey. But Consul Williams, 
who had so persistently delayed in spite of my re- 
quests, had not yet arrived, and, knowing that he 
was due within two days, I determined to wait for 
him, in the hope that he might bring some later in- 



196 GEORGE DEWEY 

formation concerning the defences. On the morn- 
ing of the 27th the Httle tug Fame was sighted in 
the distance, with him on board and bringing impor- 
tant news, as we shall see later. The commanding 
officers of the squadron were directed to assemble 
on the flag-ship for a general conference in relation 
to the latest details which he had brought. Mean- 
while, signal was given to prepare for getting under 
way, fires were spread, and at 2 p. m., after the 
consul had gone on board the Baltimore and the cap- 
tains returned to their ships, the squadron was in 
motion. We proceeded in two columns, the fight- 
ing ships forming one column, and the auxiliary ves- 
sels another twelve hundred yards in the rear; and 
with a smooth sea and favoring sky we set our course 
for the entrance to Manila Bay, six hundred miles 
away. 



I 



CHAPTER XV 
THE BATTLE OF MANILA BAY 

Manila Bay Is a spacious body of water open- 
ing out from a narrow entrance between high head- 
lands and expanding toward a low-lying country until 
it has a navigable breadth of over twenty miles. On 
either side of the inlet are high volcanic peaks densely 
covered with tropical foliage, while in the passage 
itself lie several islands. The principal islands, Cor- 
regidor and Caballo, divide this entrance into two 
channels, known as Boca Grande, the great mouth, 
and Boca Chica, the little mouth. 

Boca Chica has a width of two miles, while Boca 
Grande would have double this if it were not for the 
small island of El Fraile. This, being some distance 
off the main-land, practically reduces the breadth of 
Boca Grande to about three miles. Corregidor and 
Caballo are high and rocky, effectually commanding 
both entrances, while El Fraile, though smaller, is 
large enough to be well fortified and to aid in the 
defence of the broader channel. 

No doubt the position is a strong one for defen- 
sive batteries, but the Spaniards, in keeping with 
their weakness for procrastination, had delayed for- 
tifying the three islands until war appeared inevi- 

197 



198 GEORGE DEWEY 

table. Then they succeeded in mounting sufficient 
guns to have given our squadron a very unpleasant 
quarter of an hour before it met the Spanish squad- 
ron, provided the gunners had been enterprising and 
watchful. 

Examination of these batteries after their surren- 
der on May 2 showed that there were three 5.9-inch 
breech-loading rifles on Caballo Island, three 4.7- 
inch breech-loading rifles on El Fraile rock^ and three 
6.3-inch muzzle-loading rifles at Punta Restlnga, 
commanding the Boca Grande entrance, which our 
squadron was to use; three 8-inch muzzle-loading 
rifles on Corregidor, three 7-inch muzzle-loading 
rifles at Punta Gorda, and two 6.3-Inch breech- 
loading rifles at Punta Lasisi, commanding the Boca 
Chica entrance. The complement manning these 
batteries, as given by the official papers found in the 
commandant's office at Cavite Arsenal, was thirteen 
officers and two hundred and forty-six men. While 
the muzzle-loaders were relatively unimportant, the 
six modern rifles commanding the Boca Grande, at 
a range of a mile and a half. If accurately served, 
could deliver a telling fire. 

A cable received from our consul-general at Singa- 
pore the day before we left MIrs Bay stated that the 
Boca Grande channel had been mined. His infor- 
mation was from the steamer Isla de Panay, which 
had just arrived at Singapore from Manila. This 
agreed with the accounts of Consul Williams, and 



I 




TRACK. OF COMMODORE DEWEY'S SQUADRON DURING THE BATTLE 

OF MANII A BAY 



THE BATTLE OF MANILA BAY 199 

with those of merchant-captains from Manila who 
had recently arrived in Hong Kong. 

This subject of mines had been fully discussed in 
the conferences of myself and staff and the captains 
of our ships. We decided that submarine mines in 
Boca Grande might safely be considered a negligible 
quantity. First, the depth of water rendered the 
planting of submarine mines in Boca Grande, except 
by experts of much experience, a matter of great dif- 
ficulty; secondly, either contact or electrical mines 
would deteriorate so rapidly in tropical Waters as to 
become ineffective in a short time after being placed ; 
and, thirdly, all agreed that the many reports of 
warnings to vessels, of notices that the passage was 
dangerous, of compulsory pilotage, and of spectacu- 
lar zigzag courses appeared suspiciously like a cry 
of "wolf/' intended to have its due effect upon a 
presumptuous enemy. 

It was a similar course of reasoning, I recalled, 
that opened the Suez Canal during the Arabi Pasha 
rebellion. Hundreds of merchant-steamers had been 
blocked at the entrance to the canal in the fear of 
mines said to have been planted by the Egyptians, 
when an Italian man-of-war under the command of 
a torpedo expert (late Vice-Admiral Morin, minister 
of marine) appeared. He said that the Egyptians 
had hardly skill enough to lay mines properly, and 
if these had been laid as long as reported they were 
probably innocuous. So he steamed through the 



200 GEORGE DEWEY 

canal in spite of warning, and thus raised a blockade 
that had lasted for weeks. 

The city of Manila lies upon the eastern side of 
Manila Bay, some twenty-five miles from the en- 
trance, with the headland of Sangley Point and the 
naval station of Cavite five miles nearer. At all 
these places there were shore batteries, which added 
materially to the problem that our squadron had to 
solve. The batteries on the water-front of the city 
had thirty-nine heavy guns, four 9.4, four 5.5, two 
5.9, two 4.7 breech-loading rifles; nine 8.3 muzzle- 
loading mortars; eighteen 6.3 muzzle-loading rifles; 
and eight breech-loading Krupp field-pieces. At 
Sangley Point was a battery with two 5.9 breech- 
loading rifles and at Canacao one 4.7 breech-loading 
rifle. These three guns and three of the Manila 
batteries fired on our ships during the engagement. 
It will be noted that four guns of the Manila bat- 
teries being over 9-inch were larger calibre than any 
on board our ships. 

Before reaching the entrance to Manila Bay there 
is another bay which might be made an invaluable 
aid to the protection of the capital and its harbor 
from naval attack. This is Subig Bay, situated 
thirty miles to the northward of Corregidor and di- 
rectly upon the flank of any enemy threatening Ma- 
nila. With this strategic point effectively occupied, 
no hostile commander-in-chief would think of pass- 
ing it and leaving it as a menace to his lines of c6m- 



THE BATTLE OF MANILA BAY 201 

munication. But with it unoccupied the way was 
clear. 

The Spaniards had inaugurated a small naval 
reservation at Olongapo, the port of Subig, and at 
various times appointed boards of officers to report 
upon the strategic advantages of the situation. So 
emphatic were the recommendations of these boards 
in favor of Subig as a naval station in place of Cavite 
that the change might have been made except for 
the strong social and official opposition, which pre- 
ferred life in the capital to comparative exile in a 
provincial port. Therefore, the fortification of the 
bay had been neglected; and although at the last 
moment there was a nervous attempt to improvise 
defences, so little was done that when, on April 26, 
the Spanish admiral finally realized that Subig Bay 
was the strongest point for the defence of his fleet 
and of Manila, and accordingly sailed from Cavite 
for Subig, he found, upon arrival, that comparatively 
nothing had been accomplished and that the posi- 
tion was untenable. 

Only twenty-four hours before the arrival of our 
scouts he got under way and steamed back to Cavite. 
In his official report he writes feelingly of his disgust 
that no guns had been mounted and that the en- 
trance had not been mined. He was in error about 
the mines, however. A Spanish officer assured the 
executive officer of the Concord that eighty mines 
had been planted in the entrance to Subig Bay. 



202 GEORGE DEWEY 

Some fifteen others which the Spaniards had neglected 
to plant were found later by our officers in the Span- 
ish storehouse at the Subig Bay naval station. In 
order to get their powder the insurgents had pulled 
up many of the eighty that had been planted. 

So far as our squadron is concerned, no doubt if 
we had entered Subig Bay we should have found the 
mines there as negligible a quantity as those which 
had undoubtedly been planted in Manila Bay and 
its entrance.^ I simply mention their existence to 
show the state of misinformation in the Spanish 
admiral's mind about his own resources. He na- 
ively adds, in continuing his report, that under the 
circumstances his vessels could not only have been 
destroyed if found in Subig Bay, but that, owing 
to the great depth of water, they would have been 
unable to save their crews in case of being sunk. 
What a singular lack of morale and what a strange 
conclusion for a naval officer! 

1 Lieutenant John M. Ellicott, U. S. N., who was one of the officers 
of the Baltimore, in his article upon "The Defences of Manila Bay," 
published in the Proceedings of the U. S. Naval Institute, June, 1900, 
says: 

"In the face of all evidence the existence of mines at the entrance 
to the bay can scarcely be doubted. A chart was captured at Cavite 
next morning with lines of torpedoes marked on it in Boca Chica, and 
off San Nicolas Shoal, and with marginal memoranda about the spac- 
ing and number of mines. In the articles of capitulation signed by 
the Governor of Corregidor it was stated that mines existed in Boca 
Grande. The testimony of nearly every Spanish officer interviewed 
by the writer after the fall of Manila was to the same effect. If these 
mines were contact mines they had become innocuous from barnacles 
or sea-weed or badly adjusted moorings; if they were electro-controlled 
the firing devices had not been installed or were defective." 



THE BATTLE OF MANILA BAY 203 

A comparison of the relative strength of the two 
squadrons about to be engaged may easily be made 
by consulting Appendix A, which, however, does 
not mention some twenty-five small gun-boats not 
brought into action, but which might have been trans- 
formed into torpedo-launches for night attack or de- 
fence of the entrance to the bay. In action we had 
six ships to the Spaniards' seven, but we were supe- 
rior in class of vessel and in armaments. 

We had fifty-three guns above the 4-inch calibre 
and the Spaniards thirty-one; fifty-six guns under 
4-inch to the Spaniards' forty-four; eight torpedo- 
tubes to the Spaniards' thirteen; ofhcers and men, 
1,456 to the Spaniards' 1,447. It will be seen that, 
in keeping with American naval precedent, we were 
much more heavily armed in ratio to our personnel 
than the enemy. Neither side had any armored 
ships and both fought with brown powder. The fact 
that we were not armored made the heavy guns of 
the Spanish batteries, if they were brought to bear 
on us, a serious consideration. 

As for the batteries noted in the Olympias offi- 
cial log as having fired on us during the battle and 
verified after the surrender, they were two 6.3-inch 
muzzle-loaders and three 9.4-inch from the Manila 
batteries; two 5.9-inch from the Sangley Point bat- 
tery; and one 4.7-inch from the Canacao battery. 
All except the two muzzle-loaders mentioned were 
modern breech-loading rifles. 



204 GEORGE DEWEY 

As we cruised southward after leaving Mirs Bay, 
the weather was such that we could continue the 
preparation of crews and ships for action by drilling 
the men again in battle drills and their stations in 
case of fire, and for repairing injuries to the ships by 
shell-fire, while we built barricades of canvas and 
iron to shield the gun crews, protected the sides and 
ammunition hoists with lengths of heavy sheet chain 
faked up and down over a buffer of awnings, and 
threw overboard much extra wood-work which, while 
essential to comfort in time of peace, might become 
ignited in an engagement. Had the Spaniards dis- 
posed of their wood-work their ships would have 
burned less fiercely both at Manila and at Santiago. 
At night all lights were extinguished except one on 
the taffrail to denote position, and even this was so 
carefully screened as to be visible only from directly 
astern. The presence of the squadron on the waters 
was denoted alone by the dark forms of the ships 
and the breaking of phosphorescence at their bows 
and in the wake of their propellers. 

Now, Consul Williams, when he came on board 
just before our departure from Mirs Bay, had brought 
news which was anything but encouraging. It upset 
my preconceived ideas, as I had counted upon fight- 
ing in Manila Bay. Just as the consul was leaving 
Manila he had learned of the sailing of the Spanish 
squadron for Subig Bay. Thus Admiral Montojo 
at the last moment seemed to have realized the 



THE BATTLE OF MANILA BAY 205 

strategic advantage of Subig over Manila, which we 
had hoped he would fail to do. When we sighted 
land near Cape Bolinao early on the morning of 
May 30, the Boston and Concord were signalled to 
proceed at full speed to reconnoitre Subig Bay. 

Later, some of our officers declared that they 
heard the sound of heavy guns firing in the direction 
which the Boston and Concord had taken. Though I 
could not hear any firing myself, I sent the Baltimore 
to support the two scouts if necessary, and to await 
the rest of the squadron at the entrance to the bay. 

As the day broke the coast of Luzon, which had 
been indefinitely seen on the horizon, appeared clearly 
in outline. We kept at a distance of three or four 
miles as we cruised slowly, keeping our speed to that 
of our slowest vessel, the collier Nanshan. In the 
hope of obtaining news we overhauled some of the 
fishing-boats in our path, but they knew nothing 
of the movements of the Spanish squadron. At 3.30 
in the afternoon the three ships which had been 
sent ahead as scouts were sighted at the entrance to 
the bay. I waited very anxiously for their signal. 
When it came, saying that no enemy had been found, 
I was deeply relieved. I remember that I said to 
Lamberton, "Now we have them." 

The distance from Subig Bay to Corregidor was 
only thirty miles. As we had decided to run past 
the batteries at the entrance to Manila Bay un- 
der cover of darkness, we slowed down and finally 



2o6 GEORGE DEWEY 

stopped. All the commanding officers were signalled 
to come on board the flag-ship. When they were 
in my cabin, and Wildes, of the Boston, and Walker, 
of the Concord, had corroborated in person the im- 
port of their signals that there were no Spanish ves- 
sels in the vicinity, I said: 

"We shall enter Manila Bay to-night and you 
will follow the motions and movements of the flag- 
ship, which will lead." 

There was no discussion and no written order and 
no further particulars as to preparation. For every 
preparation that had occurred to us in our councils 
had already been made. I knew that I could depend 
upon my captains and that they understood my pur- 
poses. My position in relation to my captains and 
to all my officers and crews was happy, indeed, by 
contrast with that of the unfortunate Montojo, who 
tells in his official report of how, upon arriving at 
Subig Bay on the night of April 25 with six of his 
ships, he found that none of his orders for the de- 
fence of the bay had been executed.^ The four 5.9- 
inch guns which should have been mounted a month 
previously were lying on the shore; yet in landing- 
drill our men have often mounted guns of equal 
calibre on shore in twenty-four hours. Aside from 
the planting of the mines which have been mentioned 
and the sinking of three old hulks at the eastern 
entrance of the bay, nothing had been done. 

^ Appendix C. 



/:'■ 



V 




/ 



<- .' ♦ - ■ . \ 



/. 

u^ 



^ 



From a photograph by Harris y Ewing 

COMMODORE DEWEY'S DIARY — THE START FOR MANILA BAY 



THE BATTLE OF MANILA BAY 207 

Soon after his arrival at Subig on the 28th Ad- 
miral Montojo received the following cable from the 
Spanish consul at Hong Kong: 

"The enemy's squadron sailed at 2 p. m. from 
Mirs Bay, and according to reliable accounts they 
sailed for Subig to destroy our squadron and then 
will go to Manila." 

A council of war was held, and the captains of 
the Spanish ships unanimously voted to return to 
Manila rather than, as their own consul had ex- 
pressed it, be destroyed where they were. So on 
the morning of the 29th the Spanish squadron 
steamed back to Cavite. The attitude of the com- 
manding officers must have been the attitude of the 
personnel. Any force in such a state of mind is al- 
ready half beaten. The morale of his squadron, as 
revealed by Montojo's report after the battle, bore 
out my reasoning before the war had begun, that 
everywhere the Spaniards would stand upon the de- 
fensive. This must mean defeat in the end, and the 
more aggressive and prompt our action the smaller 
would be our losses and the sooner peace would 
come. 

When my captains, after receiving their final 
orders on board the flag-ship, had returned to their 
own ships, the squadron resumed its course to Cor- 
regidor. As the gloom of night gradually shut out 
the details of the coast, the squadron steamed quietly 
on toward the entrance of Manila Bay with all lights 



2o8 GEORGE DEWEY 

masked and the gun crews at the guns. By degrees 
the high land on either side loomed up out of the 
darkness, while the flag-ship headed for Boca Grande, 
which was the wider but comparatively little used 
channel. A light shower passed over about eleven 
o'clock and heavy, cumulus clouds drifting across 
the sky from time to time obscured the new moon. 
The landmarks and islands were, however, fairly 
visible, while compass bearings for regulating our 
course could readily be observed. 

It was thirty-six years since, as executive officer 
of the Mississippi, I was first under fire in the passage 
of Forts Jackson and St. Philip under Farragut, and 
thirty-five years since, as executive officer, I had lost 
my ship in the attempted passage of the batteries 
of Port Hudson. Then, as now, we were dependent 
upon the screen of darkness to get by successfully, 
but then I was a subordinate and now the supreme 
responsibility was mine. 

If the guns commanding the entrance were well 
served, there was danger of damage to my squadron 
before it engaged the enemy's squadron. If the 
Spaniards had shown enterprise in the use of the 
materials which they possessed, then we might have 
expected a heavy fire from the shore batteries. One 
who had military knowledge did not have to wait 
for the developments of the Russo-Japanese War to 
know how quickly modern guns of high velocity and 
low trajectory may be emplaced and how effective 



THE BATTLE OF MANILA BAY 209 

they may be, when fired from a stationary position, 
against so large a target as a ship. Had the bat- 
teries search-hghts they could easily locate us, while 
we could locate them only by the flash of their guns. 

When we were ten miles from Boca Grande we 
judged, as we saw signal lights flash, that we had 
already been sighted either by small vessels acting 
as scouts or by land lookouts. El Fraile was passed 
by the flag-ship at a distance of half a mile and was 
utilized as a point of departure for the course up the 
bay clear of the San Nicolas Shoals. When El Fraile 
bore due south (magnetic) the course was changed 
to northeast by north. We were not surprised to 
find the usual lights on Corregidor and Caballo 
Islands and the San Nicolas Shoals extinguished, as 
this was only a natural precaution on the part of the 
Spaniards. 

There were no vessels, so far as we could see, cruis- 
ing off the entrance, no dash of torpedo-launches 
which might have been expected, no sign of life be- 
yond the signalling on shore until the rear of the 
column, steaming at full speed, was between Cor- 
regidor and El Fraile. 

As we watched the walls of darkness for the first 
gun-flash, every moment of our progress brought its 
relief, and now we began to hope that we should get 
by without being fired on at ah. But about ten 
minutes after midnight, when all except our rear 
ships had cleared it, the El Fraile battery opened 



2IO GEORGE DEWEY 

with a shot that passed between the Petrel and the 
Raleigh. The Boston, Concord, Raleigh, and Mc- 
Culloch returned the fire with a few shots. One 
8-inch shell from the Boston seemed to be effective. 
After firing three times El Fraile was silent. There 
was no demonstration whatever from the Caballo 
battery, with its three 6-inch modern rifles, no ex- 
plosion of mines, and no other resistance. We were 
safely within the bay. The next step was to locate 
the Spanish squadron and engage it. 

Afterward we heard various explanations of why 
we were not given a warmer reception as we passed 
through. Some of the officers in the El Fraile bat- 
tery said that their dilatoriness in opening fire was 
due to the fact that their men were ashore at Punta 
Lasisi and could not get off to their guns in time 
after they heard of the squadron's approach. An 
eye-witness on Corregidor informed me that our 
squadron was perfectly visible as it was passing 
through the entrance, but for some extraordinary 
reason the commanding officer gave no orders to the 
batteries to open fire. 

Perhaps the enemy thought that he had done all 
that was necessary by cutting off the usual lights 
on Corregidor and Caballo Islands and San Nicolas 
Shoals for guiding mariners, and he expected that 
without pilots and without any knowledge of the 
waters we would not be guilty of such a foolhardy at- 
tempt as entering an unlighted channel at midnight. 



THE BATTLE OF MANILA BAY 2n 

Once through the entrance, as I deemed it wise 
to keep moving in order not to be taken by surprise 
when the ships had no headway, and as, at the same 
time, I did not wish to reach our destination before 
we had sufficient dayhght to show us the position of 
the Spanish ships, the speed of the squadron was 
reduced to four knots, while we headed toward the 
city of Manila. In the meantime the men were al- 
lowed to snatch a little sleep at their guns; but at 
four o'clock coffee was served to them, and so eager 
were they that there was no need of any orders to 
insure readiness for the work to come. 

Signal lights, rockets, and beacon lights along 
the shore, now that we were sure of grappling with 
the enemy, no longer concerned us. We waited for 
dawn and the first sight of the Spanish squadron, 
which I had rather expected would be at the anchor- 
age off the city of Manila. This seemed naturally 
the strong position for Admiral Montojo to take up, 
as he would then have the powerful Manila battery, 
mounting the guns which have already been enu- 
merated, to support him. But the admiral stated in 
his report that he had avoided this position on ac- 
count of the resultant injury which the city might 
have received if the battle had been fought in close 
proximity to it.^ 

The Nanshan and Zafiro, as there was no reserve 
ammunition for either to carry, had been sent, with 

' Appendix C. 



212 GEORGE DEWEY 

the McCulloch, into an unfrequented part of the bay 
in order that they should sustain no injury and that 
they might not hamper the movements of the fight- 
ing-ships. When we saw that there were only mer- 
chantmen at the Manila anchorage, the squadron, 
led by the flag-ship, gradually changed its course, 
swinging around on the arc of a large circle leading 
toward the city and making a kind of countermarch, 
as it were, until headed in the direction of Cavite. 
This brought the ships within two or three miles of 
shore, with a distance of four hundred yards be- 
tween ships, in the following order: Olympia (flag), 
Baltimore, Raleigh, Petrel, Concord, and Boston. 

About 5.05 the Luneta and two other Manila 
batteries opened fire. Their shots passed weU over 
the vessels. It was estimated that some had a range 
of seven miles. Only the Boston and Concord replied. 
Each sent two shells at the Luneta battery. The 
other vessels reserved their fire, having in mind my 
caution that, in the absence of a full supply of am- 
munition, the amount we had was too precious to 
be wasted when we were seven thousand miles from 
our base. My captains understood that the Span- 
ish ships were our objective and not the shore forti- 
fications of a city that would be virtually ours as 
soon as our squadron had control of Manila Bay. 

With the coming of broad daylight we finally 
sighted the Spanish vessels formed in an irregular 
crescent in front of Cavite. The Olympia headed 



THE BATTLE OF MANILA BAY 213 

toward them, and in answer to her signal to close 
up, the distance between our ships was reduced to 
two hundred yards. The western flank of the Span- 
ish squadron was protected by Cavite Peninsula and 
the Sangley Point battery, while its eastern flank 
rested in the shoal water off Las Pinas. 

The Spanish line of battle was formed by the 
Reina Cristina (flag), Castilla, Don Juan de Austria, 
Don Antonio de Ullody Isla de Luzon^ Isla de Cuba, 
and Marques del Duero. 

The Velasco and Lezo were on the other (southern) 
side of Cavite Point, and it is claimed by the Span- 
iards that they took no part in the action. Some 
of the vessels in the Spanish battle-line were under 
way, and others were moored so as to bring their 
broadside batteries to bear to the best advantage. 
The Castilla was protected by heavy iron lighters 
filled with stone. 

Before me now was the object for which we had 
made our arduous preparations, and which, indeed, 
must ever be the supreme test of a naval officer's 
career. I felt confident of the outcome, though I 
had no thought that victory would be won at so 
slight a cost to our own side. Confidence was ex- 
pressed in the very precision with which the dun, 
war-colored hulls of the squadron followed in column 
behind the flag-ship, keeping their distance excel- 
lently. All the guns were pointed constantly at the 
enemy, while the men were at their stations waiting 
the word. There was no break in the monotone of 



214 GEORGE DEWEY 

the engines save the mechanical voice of the leads- 
man or an occasional low-toned command by the 
quartermaster at the conn, or the roar of a Spanish 
shell. The Manila batteries continued their inac- 
curate fire, to which we paid no attention. 

The misty haze of the tropical dawn had hardly 
risen when at 5.15, at long range, the Cavite forts and 
Spanish squadron opened fire. Our course was not 
one leading directly toward the enemy, but a con- 
verging one, keeping him on our starboard bow. Our 
speed was eight knots and our converging course 
and ever-varying position must have confused the 
Spanish gunners. My assumption that the Spanish 
fire would be hasty and inaccurate proved correct. 

So far as I could see, none of our ships was suf- 
fering any damage, while, in view of my limited am- 
munition supply, it was my plan not to open fire until 
we were within effective range, and then to fire as 
rapidly as possible with all of our guns. 

At 5.40, when we were within a distance of 5,000 
yards (two and one-half miles), I turned to Captain 
Gridley and said: 

"You may fire when you are ready, Gridley." 

While I remained on the bridge with Lamberton, 
Brumby, and Stickney, Gridley took his station in 
the conning-tower and gave the order to the battery. 
The very first gun to speak was an 8-inch from 
the forward turret of the Olympia, and this was the 
signal for all the other ships to join the action. 

At about the time that the Spanish ships were 



THE BATTLE OF MANILA BAY 215 

first sighted, 5.06, two submarine mines were ex- 
ploded between our squadron and Cavite, some two 
miles ahead of our column. On account of the dis- 
tance, I remarked to Lamberton: 

"Evidently the Spaniards are already rattled." 

However, they explained afterward that the pre- 
mature explosions were due to a desire to clear a 
space in which their ships might manoeuvre. 

At one time a torpedo-launch made an attempt 
to reach the Olympia, but she was sunk by the guns 
of the secondary battery and went down bow first, 
and another yellow-colored launch flying the Spanish 
colors ran out, heading for the Olympia, but after 
being disabled she was beached to prevent her sink- 
ing. 

When the flag-ship neared the five-fathom curve 
off Cavite she turned to the westward, bringing her 
port batteries to bear on the enemy, and, followed 
by the squadron, passed along the Spanish line until 
north of and only some fifteen hundred yards dis- 
tant from the Sangley Point battery, when she again 
turned and headed back to the eastward, thus giving 
the squadron an opportunity to use their port and 
starboard batteries alternately and to cover with 
their fire all the Spanish ships, as well as the Cavite 
and Sangley Point batteries. While I was regulating 
the course of the squadron. Lieutenant Calkins was 
verifying our position by crossbearings and by the 
lead. 



2i6 GEORGE DEWEY 

Three runs were thus made from the eastward and 
two from the westward, the length of each run aver- 
aging two miles and the ships being turned each time 
with port helm. Calkins found that there was in 
reality deeper water than shown on the chart, and 
when he reported the fact to me, inasmuch as my 
object was to get as near as possible to the enemy 
without grounding our own vessels, the fifth run 
past the Spaniards was farther inshore than any 
preceding run. At the nearest point to the enemy 
our range was only two thousand yards. 

There had been no cessation in the rapidity of 
fire maintained by our whole squadron, and the ef- 
fect of its concentration, owing to the fact that our 
ships were kept so close together, was smothering, 
particularly upon the two largest ships, the Rema 
Cristina and Castilla. The Don Juan de Austria first 
and then the Reina Cristina made brave and desper- 
ate attempts to charge the Olympia, but becoming 
the target for all our batteries they turned and ran 
back. In this sortie the Reina Cristina was raked by 
an 8-inch shell, which is said to have put out of 
action some twenty men and to have completely 
destroyed her steering-gear. Another shell in her 
forecastle killed or wounded all the members of the 
crews of four rapid-fire guns; another set fire to her 
after orlop; another killed or disabled nine men on 
her poop; another carried away her mizzen-mast, 
bringing down the ensign and the admiral's flag. 



THE BATTLE OF MANILA BAY 217 

both of which were replaced; another exploded in 
the after ammunition-room; and still another ex- 
ploded in the sick-bay, which was already filled with 
wounded. 

When she was raised from her muddy bed, five 
years later, eighty skeletons were found in the sick- 
bay and fifteen shot holes in the hull; while the 
many hits mentioned in Admiral Montojo's report, 
and his harrowing description of the shambles that 
his flag-ship had become when he was finally obliged 
to leave her, shows what execution was done to her 
upper works. Her loss was one hundred and fifty 
killed and ninety wounded, seven of these being of- 
ficers. Among the killed was her valiant captain, 
Don Luis Cadarso, who, already wounded, finally 
met his death while bravely directing the rescue of 
his men from the burning and sinking vessel. 

Though in the early part of the action our firing 
was not what I should have liked it to be, it soon 
steadied down, and by the time the Reina Cristina 
steamed toward us it was satisfactorily accurate. 
The Castilla fared little better than the Reina Cris- 
tina. All except one of her guns was disabled, she 
was set on fire by our shells, and finally abandoned 
by her crew after they had sustained a loss of twenty- 
three killed and eighty wounded. The Don Juan 
de Austria was badly damaged and on fire, the Isla 
de Luzon had three guns dismounted, and the Mar- 
ques del Duero was also in a bad way. Admiral 



2i8 GEORGE DEWEY 

Montojo, finding his flag-ship no longer manageable, 
half her people dead or wounded, her guns useless 
and the ship on fire, gave the order to abandon and 
sink her, and transferred his flag to the Isla de Cuba 
shortly after seven o'clock. 

Victory was already ours, though we did not 
know it. Owing to the smoke over the Spanish 
squadron there were no visible signs of the execu- I 

tion wrought by our guns when we started upon our | 

fifth run past the enemy. We were keeping up our 
rapid fire, and the flag-ship was opposite the centre 
of the Spanish line, when, at 7.35, the captain of the 
Olympia made a report to me which was as startling 
as it was unexpected. This was to the effect that 
on board the Olympia there remained only fifteen 
rounds per gun for the 5-inch battery. 

It was a most anxious moment for me. So far 
as I could see, the Spanish squadron was as intact 
as ours. I had reason to believe that their supply 
of ammunition was as ample as ours was limited. 

Therefore, I decided to withdraw temporarily 
from action for a redistribution of ammunition if 
necessary. For I knew that fifteen rounds of 5-inch 
ammunition could be shot away in five minutes. But 
even as we were steaming out of range the distress 
of the Spanish ships became evident. Some of them 
were perceived to be on fire and others were seeking 
protection behind Cavite Point. The Do7i Antonio 
de Ulloa, however, still retained her position at Sang- 



THE BATTLE OF MANILA BAY 219 

ley Point, where she had been moored. Moreover, 
the Spanish fire, with the exception of the Manila 
batteries, to which we had paid Httle attention, had 
ceased entirely. It was clear that we did not need 
a very large supply of ammunition to finish our morn- 
ing's task; and happily it was found that the report 
about the Olympias 5-inch ammunition had been 
incorrectly transmitted. It was that fifteen rounds 
had been fired per gun, not that only fifteen rounds 
remained. 

Feeling confident of the outcome, I now signalled 
that the crews, who had had only a cup of coffee at 
4 A. M., should have their breakfast. The public at 
home, on account of this signal, to which was attrib- 
uted a nonchalance that had never occurred to me, 
reasoned that breakfast was- the real reason for our 
withdrawing from action. Meanwhile, I improved 
the opportunity to have the commanding officers 
report on board the flag-ship. 

There had been such a heavy flight of shefls over 
us that each captain, when he arrived, was convinced 
that no other ship had had such good luck as his 
own in being missed by the enemy's fire, and ex- 
pected the others to have both casualties and dam- 
ages to their ships to report. But fortune was as 
pronouncedly in our favor at Manila as it was later 
at Santiago. To my gratification not a single life 
had been lost, and considering that we would rather 
measure the importance of an action by the scale 



220 GEORGE DEWEY 

of its conduct than by the number of casualties we 
were immensely happy. The concentration of our 
fire immediately we were within telling range had 
given us an early advantage in demoralizing the 
enemy, which has ever been the prime factor in naval 
battles. In the War of 1812 the losses of the Con- 
stitution were slight when she overwhelmed the 
Guerriere and in the Civil War the losses of the Kear- 
sarge were slight when she made a shambles of the 
Alabama. On the Baltimore two officers (Lieuten- 
ant F. W. Kellogg and Ensign N. E. Irwin) and six 
men were slightly wounded. None of our ships had 
been seriously hit, and every one was still ready for 
immediate action. 

In detail the injuries which we had received from 
the Spanish fire were as follows: 

The Olympia was hulled five times and her rig- 
ging was cut in several places. One six-pound pro- 
jectile struck immediately under the position where 
I was standing. The Baltimore was hit five times. 
The projectile which wounded two officers and six 
men pursued a most erratic course. It entered the 
ship's side forward of the starboard gangway, and just 
above the line of the main deck, passed through the 
hammock-netting, down through the deck planks 
and steel deck, bending the deck beam in a ward- 
room state-room, thence upward through the after 
engine-room coaming, over against the cylinder of a 
6-inch gun, disabling the gun, struck and exploded 



THE BATTLE OF MANILA BAY 221 

a box of three-pounder ammunition, hit an iron 
ladder, and finally, spent, dropped on deck. The 
Boston had four unimportant hits, one causing a 
fire which was soon extinguished, and the Petrel 
was struck once. 

At 1 1. 16 A. M. we stood in to complete our work. 
There remained to oppose us, however, only the bat- 
teries and the gallant little Ulloa. Both opened fire 
as we advanced. But the contest was too unequal 
to last more than a few minutes. Soon the Ulloa, 
under our concentrated fire, went down valiantly 
with her colors flying. 

The battery at Sangley Point was well served, 
and several times reopened fire before being finally 
silenced. Had this battery possessed its four other 
6-inch guns which Admiral Montojo had found use- 
lessly lying on the beach at Subig, our ships would 
have had many more casualties to report. Hap- 
pily for us, the guns of this battery had been so 
mounted that they could be laid only for objects 
beyond the range of two thousand yards. As the 
course of our ships led each time within this range, 
the shots passed over and beyond them. Evidently 
the artillerists, who had so constructed their carriages 
that the muzzles of the guns took against the sill of 
the embrasure for any range under two thousand 
yards, thought it out of the question that an enemy 
would venture within this distance. 

The Concord was sent to destroy a large transport. 



222 GEORGE DEWEY 

the Mindanao, which had been beached near Bacoor, 
and the Petrel, whose hght draught would permit 
her to move in shallower water than the other ves- 
sels of the squadron, was sent into the harbor of 
Cavite to destroy any ships that had taken refuge 
there. The Minda?iao was set on fire and her valu- 
able cargo destroyed. Meanwhile, the Petrel gal- 
lantly performed her duty, and after a few shots 
from her 6-inch guns the Spanish flag on the govern- 
ment buildings was hauled down and a white flag 
hoisted. Admiral Montojo had been wounded, and 
had taken refuge on shore with his remaining officers 
and men; his loss was three hundred and eighty- 
one of his officers and crew, and there was no pos- 
sibility of further resistance. 

At 12.30 the Petrel signalled the fact of the sur- 
render, and the firing ceased. But the Spanish ves- 
sels were not yet fully destroyed. Therefore, the 
executive officer of the Petrel, Lieutenant E. M. 
Hughes, with a whale-boat and a crew of only seven 
men, boarded and set fire to the Don Juan de Aus- 
tria, Isla de Cuba, Isla de Luzon, General Lezo, Coreo, 
and Marques del Duero, all of which had been aban- 
doned in shallow water and left scuttled by their 
deserting crews. This was a courageous undertak- 
ing, as these vessels were supposed to have been left 
with trains to their magazines and were not far from 
the shore, where there were hundreds of Spanish sold- 
iers and sailors, all armed and greatly excited. The 



THE BATTLE OF MANILA BAY 223 

Manila^ an armed transport, which was found un- 
injured after having been beached by the Spaniards, 
was therefore spared. Two days later she was easily 
floated, and for many years did good service as a 
gun-boat. The little Petrel continued her work until 
5.20 p. M., when she rejoined the squadron, towing a 
long string of tugs and launches, to be greeted by 
volleys of cheers from every ship. 

The order to capture or destroy the Spanish 
squadron had been executed to the letter. Not one 
of its fighting-vessels remained afloat. That night 
I wrote in my diary: *' Reached Manila at daylight. 
Immediately engaged the Spanish ships and batteries 
at Cavite. Destroyed eight of the former, including 
the Reina Cristina and Castilla. Anchored at noon 
off Manila." 

As soon as we had sunk the Ulloa and silenced 
the batteries at Sangley Point, the Olympia, fol- 
lowed by the Baltimore and Raleigh, while the Con- 
cord and Petrel were carrying out their orders, started 
for the anchorage off the city. The Manila batteries, 
which had kept up such a persistent though impo- 
tent firing all the early part of the day, were now silent 
and made no attempt to reopen as our ships ap- 
proached the city. 

Consul Williams was sent on board a British ship 
moored close inshore near the mouth of the Pasig 
River, with instructions to request her captain to be 
the bearer of a message to the Spanish captain-gen- 
eral. This message was taken ashore at 2 p. m., in 



224 GEORGE DEWEY 

the form of a note to the British consul, Mr. E. H. 
Rawson-Walker, who, after the departure of Mr. Wil- 
Hams, had assumed charge of our archives and in- 
terests, requesting him to see the captain-general, and 
to say to him, on my behalf, that if another shot 
were fired at our ships from the Manila batteries we 
should destroy the city. Moreover, if there were 
any torpedo-boats in the Pasig River they must be 
surrendered, and if we were allowed to transmit mes- 
sages by the cable to Hong Kong the captain-general 
would also be permitted to use it. 

Assurance came promptly that the forts would 
not fire at our squadron unless it was evident that 
a disposition of our ships to bombard the city was 
being made. This assurance, which was kept even 
during the land attack upon the city, some three 
months later, led me to drop anchor for the first 
time since we had entered the bay. From the mo- 
ment that the captain-general accepted my terms 
the city was virtually surrendered, and I was in con- 
trol of the situation, subject to my government's 
orders for the future. I had established a base seven 
thousand miles from home which I might occupy in- 
definitely. As I informed the secretary of the navy 
in my cable of May 4, our squadron controlled the 
bay and could take the city at any time. The only 
reason for awaiting the arrival of troops before de- 
manding its surrender was the lack of sufficient force 
to occupy it. 

In answer to the other points of my message. 




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COMMODORE DEWEY'S DIARY — THE DATTLE OF 
MANILA BAY 



THE BATTLE OF MANILA BAY 225 

the captain-general, Don Basilio Augustin Davila, 
said that he knew of no torpedo-boats in the river, 
but that if there were any his honor would not allow 
him to surrender them. As there were none, he was 
quite safe in making this reservation, which did not 
affect the main fact, that his capital was under our 
guns. He refused my request about the cable. As 
a result he found himself cut off from all telegraphic 
communication with the outside world on the next 
morning, because I directed the Zafiro to cut the 
cable. 

As the sun set on the evening of May i, crowds 
of people gathered along the water-front, gazing at 
the American squadron. They climbed on the ram- 
parts of the very battery that had fired on us in the 
morning. The Olympias band, for their benefit, 
played "La Paloma" and other Spanish airs, and 
while the sea-breeze wafted the strains to their ears 
the poor colonel of artillery who had commanded the 
battery, feeling himself dishonored by his disgrace- 
ful failure, shot himself through the head. 

During the mid-watch that night a steam-launch 
was discovered coming off from Manila. The crews 
went to quarters and search-lights and guns were 
trained upon her until she approached the Olympian 
when she was allowed to come alongside. A Span- 
ish official was on board. He desired permission to 
proceed to Corregidor to instruct the commanding 
officer that none of the batteries at the entrance to 



226 GEORGE DEWEY 

the bay were to fire on our ships when passing in or 
out. Permission was granted and he was told to 
return the following morning. When he came he 
was put on board the Raleigh^ which was sent, with 
the Baltimore as escort, to demand the surrender of 
all the defences at the entrance to the bay. The 
surrender was made and the garrisons disarmed. 
The next day I had the Boston and Concord land 
parties, who disabled the guns and brought their 
breech-plugs off to the ships. All the ammunition 
found, as it was of a calibre unsuited to any of our 
guns, was destroyed. 

Meanwhile, to my surprise, on the morning of 
May 2, the Spanish flag was seen to be again flying 
over the Cavite arsenal. Captain Lamberton was 
sent at once to inquire what it meant, and to demand 
a formal surrender. He went over to Cavite in the 
Petrel, and upon leaving her to go on shore gave in- 
structions that in case he did not return within an 
hour she was to open fire on the arsenal. Upon 
landing he found the Spanish soldiers and sailors 
under arms, and in answer to his inquiry, what was 
meant by this and by the hoisting of the Spanish 
colors, he was informed by the Spanish commandant, 
Captain Sostoa, that the colors had been lowered 
the day before only as token of a temporary truce. 
Captain Lamberton's reply to this evasive excuse 
was an ultimatum that if the white flag were not 
hoisted by noon he would open fire. 



THE BATTLE OF MANILA BAY 227 

Captain Sostoa then asked for time in which to 
refer the matter to Madrid, and this being refused, 
for time to refer it to the authorities at Manila. But 
he was informed that only an unconditional surren- 
der of officers, men, and arms would be considered. 
Captain Lamberton then returned to the Petrel, and 
at 11.3s the white flag was hoisted by the order of 
Admiral Montojo; and it was this order, peculiarly 
enough, and not the loss of his squadron, that led to 
his court-martial upon his return to Spain. Shortly 
afterward all the Spanish officers and men evacuated 
the place. Possibly imperfect knowledge of each 
other's language by Captain Lamberton and Cap- 
tain Sostoa led to a misunderstanding of our terms 
by the Spaniards. In a way this was fortunate for 
us, as we were in no position to take care of prisoners. 
We had what we needed: possession of the arsenal, 
with its machinery, workshops, and supplies, as a 
base for future operations. 

It was not until May 4, however, when all the 
aftermath of the details of the victory had been 
cared for, that I found it convenient to send the 
McCulloch to Hong Kong to transmit to Washing- 
ton the complete news of what the squadron had 
accompHshed, where already many misleading reports 
had been received from Spanish sources. Before 
the cable was cut the captain-general, in a communi- 
cation to his government, had acknowledged his se- 
vere loss, yet intimated that the American squadron 



228 GEORGE DEWEY 

had been repulsed; while other cables affirmed that 
our casualties were heavy.^ 

But the newspapers of May 2 had had a brief 
announcement of the victory, one of which had been 
sent by the operator at the Manila cable station 
before the cable was cut. Senator Redfield Proctor, 
of Vermont, who had been responsible for my assign- 
ment to the command of the Asiatic Squadron, felt 
that he had a personal cause for jubilation, and on 
the morning of the 2d he wrote the following note, 
in his characteristic vein, to President McKinley: 

" I feel well this morning. 

"You may remember that you gave, at my ear- 
nest request, the direction to Secretary Long to as- 
sign Commodore Dewey to the Asiatic Squadron. 
You will find you made no mistake; and I want to 
say that he will be as wise and safe, if there are 
political duties devolving on him, as he is forcible in 
action. There is no better man in discretion and 
safe judgment. We may run him against you for 
President. He would make a good one." 

The President now gave me the same rank of act- 
ing rear-admiral that Captain Sampson, command- 

i"Last night, April 30, the batteries at the entrance to the port 
announced the arrival of the enemy's squadron, forcing a passage under 
the obscurity of the night. At daybreak the enemy took up posi- 
tion, opening with a strong fire against Fort Cavite and the arsenal. 
Our fleet engaged the enemy in a brilliant combat, protected by the 
Cavite and Manila forts. They obliged the enemy with heavy loss 
to manoeuvre repeatedly. At nine o'clock the American squadron 
took refuge behind the foreign shipping on the east side of the bay." — 
(Cablegram of the Spanish captain-general to Madrid, May i, 1898.) 



THE BATTLE OF MANILA BAY 229 

ing the North Atlantic Squadron, had already re- 
ceived. Congress passed a vote of thanks to the 
squadron commander, its officers and men, and all 
anxiety for the safety of the Pacific coast was re- 
lieved. One of the most gratifying cables was this: 
*' Every American is your debtor. Roosevelt." 

Not until many weeks later, when the mails began 
to arrive, did I fully realize how the victory had elec- 
trified the whole United States. One of the first con- 
gratulatory letters received I particularly prize. It 
was written by my old friend John Hay, then am- 
bassador to England, in the delightful phrase of 
which he was a master. He spoke of the "mingled 
wisdom and daring" of our entrance into the bay, 
which has always seemed to me as fine a compliment 
as any naval officer could receive. 

The victory had put a stop to the talk of European 
intervention. It had set a pace to be followed in the 
operations on the Atlantic coast and had checked the 
mendacious slanders about our navy which had been 
circulated broadcast throughout continental Europe. 
There were reports of utter lack of discipline and 
that our crews were entirely foreign mercenaries. 
Perhaps, in comparison with some foreign navies, we 
lacked the etiquette of discipline, which is imma- 
terial if the spirit of discipline exists. We had the 
spirit — efficient, dependable, and intelligent. "The 
man behind the gun" was not a foreigner. With the 
development of the new navy the percentage of 



230 GEORGE DEWEY 

American-born seamen had rapidly increased. It 
was about eighty per cent in my squadron. 

In his war proclamation, April 23, 1898, the 
Spanish captain-general had declared that the North 
American people were ** constituted of all the social 
excrescences." He spoke of us as a *' squadron 
manned by foreigners possessing neither instruction 
nor discipline," which was *' unacquainted with the 
rights of property" and had come "to kidnap those 
persons whom they consider useful to man their 
ships or to be exploited in agricultural or indus- 
trial labor. . . . Vain designs! Ridiculous boastings! 
. . . They shall not profane the tombs of your 
fathers, they shall not gratify their lustful passions 
at the cost of your wives' and daughters' honor, or 
appropriate the property your industry has accumu- 
lated as a provision for your old age." 

The author of this proclamation, I was told, was 
not the captain-general himself, but the Archbishop 
of Manila, who as head of the church in the Philip- 
pines was ex officio a member of the general council 
of the colony. Some months later I had the pleasure 
of entertaining him on board the Olympia. In his 
honor I had the ship's company paraded. As he 
saw the fine young fellows march past his surprise 
at their appearance was manifest. 

"Admiral, you must be very proud to command 
such a body of men," he said finally. 

"Yes, I am," I declared; "and I have just the 



THE BATTLE OF MANILA BAY 231 

same kind of men on board all the other ships in the 
harbor." 

"Admiral, I have been here for thirty years," he 
concluded. "I have seen the men-of-war of all the 
nations, but never have I seen anything like this" 
(as he pointed to the Olym-pia s crew). 

In view of the language of the proclamation, I 
considered this generous admission very illuminating. 

But better than winning the esteem of foreigners 
was winning that of our own people. They could 
have had none too great confidence in their navy 
at the outbreak of the war, or else there would not 
have been such a popular cry to have the Atlantic 
coast guarded against possible ravages by Cervera's 
squadron. 

It was the ceaseless routine of hard work and 
preparation in time of peace that won Manila and 
Santiago. Valor there must be, but it is a secondary 
factor in comparison with strength of material and 
efficiency of administration. Valor the Spaniards 
displayed, and in the most trying and adverse cir- 
cumstances. The courageous defence made by all 
the vessels of the Spanish squadron, the desperate at- 
tempt of the Reina Cristina to close with the Olym- 
pia, and the heroic conduct of her captain, who, after 
fighting his ship until she was on fire and sinking, 
lost his own life in his attempt to save his wounded 
men, can only excite the most profound admiration 
and pity. 



232 GEORGE DEWEY 

But what might not have been accomphshed had 
this courage been properly directed and had there 
been appreciation of the importance of preparation? 
For three months war had been imminent, and al- 
though the Spanish government was highly repre- 
hensible for its unaccountable inertia, and Spanish 
indolence and climatic injfluences must bear their 
share of blame, nothing can excuse the Spanish au- 
thorities in the Philippines for neglecting to utilize 
the materials of defence already in their possession. 

The approach of our squadron had been reported 
from Bolinao in the morning and from Subig in the 
afternoon the day before the battle, yet the Spanish 
admiral that very evening left his flag-ship and went 
over to Manila, five miles distant, to attend a recep- 
tion given by his wife. He was driving back to 
Cavite by carriage at the same hour that our squad- 
ron was passing through the Boca Grande. Many 
of his officers, following his example, passed the night 
ashore and were seen returning to their ships early 
on the morning of the battle, after the firing had 
actually begun. 

To us it seems almost incomprehensible that the 
guns of Caballo and Corregidor and Punta Restinga 
failed to fire on our ships; that when our vessels 
were hampered by the narrow waters of the entrance 
there was no night attack by the many small vessels 
possessed by the Spaniards; and that during the ac- 
tion neither the Isla de Cuba nor the Isla de Luwriy 



THE BATTLE OF MANILA BAY 233 

each of them protected by an armored deck and 
fitted with two torpedo-tubes, made any attempt to 
torpedo our ships. 

Naturally, the Spanish government attempted to 
make a scape-goat of poor Admiral Montojo, the vic- 
tim of their own shortcomings and maladministration, 
and he was soon afterward ordered home and brought 
before a court-martial. It was some satisfaction to 
know that a factor in influencing the court in con- 
cluding that he had fulfilled his duty in a courageous 
manner was a letter from me^ testifying to his gal- 
lantry in the action, which I was glad to give in 
response to his request. 

^ Appendix D. 



CHAPTER XVI 
AFTER THE BATTLE 

There was little leisure or rest, either for myself 
or my subordinates, in the early days of May. We 
had to inaugurate a system to meet the conditions 
which were the result of the battle. The blockade 
of Manila must be established and enforced; immu- 
nity from surprise or attack by the Spaniards insured; 
Cavite arsenal must be occupied, its stores protected, 
and its precincts policed; and, generally, American 
supremacy and military discipline must take the 
place of chaos. 

About II A. M., on the 2d of May, the British 
consul, Mr. E. H. Rawson-Walker, who was acting 
as gerant of United States consular affairs, came on 
board the Olympia to make an official call. During 
many weeks to come he was to perform a most valu- 
able service in his efforts to render the lot of the 
foreign residents as little onerous as possible under 
what, to them, were most trying conditions. I asked 
him to remain to luncheon with me. While we were 
waiting for it to be announced and he was telling me 
about the condition of affairs in the city, I was in- 
formed that the shore batteries of Manila were being 
manned. As a matter of precaution, the ships were 

234 



AFTER THE BATTLE 235 

signalled to go to general quarters; but at the same 
time I told the consul he need have no fear of the 
batteries opening fire. So we sat down to our meal, 
which was not interrupted by any shots. 

This incident had its effect. The consul agreed 
with me that, in view of the possibility of some irre- 
sponsible person in the batteries firing on the ships 
and thus precipitating a bombardment of the city, 
it would be advisable to remove the temptation. 
Late that afternoon the ships all took up an anchor- 
age nearer our base off the Cavite arsenal, which was 
retained until the attack on Manila In the following 
August. 

During the night, between the departure of the 
Spaniards and the landing of our guards at Cavite, 
there had been some looting on the part of the na- 
tives. But the next morning the place was well po- 
liced by our forces and all disorder checked. Com- 
mander E. P. Wood, of the Petrel, was placed In 
charge of the arsenal, government buildings, and 
stores; the machinery, docks, and workshops were 
utilized for our ships, and, later, the many resources 
of the place were employed not only In keeping our 
squadron in good condition, but also In making re- 
pairs upon the other naval vessels and army trans- 
ports which later arrived from home. 

Working parties were at once landed to bury the 
dead, and all our surgeons were sent ashore to aid 
In attending the Spanish sick and wounded. Ar- 



236 GEORGE DEWEY 

rangements were soon made to send the sick and 
wounded, numbering four hundred and ninety, to 
Manila. Captain Lamberton took charge of their 
removal upon the captured steamer Isabel, flying 
the Red Cross flag, and later of their transfer to the 
Spanish authorities. A detail of marines was sent 
to act as stretcher-men in moving those unable to 
walk from the hospital to the steamer. The sisters, 
who were acting as nurses, received the marines with 
every sign of abject fear and horror. They had read 
the Spanish captain-general's proclamation about the 
fiendish nature of the American barbarian, and fully 
expected to be subjected to outrage. 

In establishing the blockade all merchant-vessels 
in the bay were assigned an appropriate anchorage 
outside the zone of possible naval operations. All 
arriving merchant-vessels were boarded off the Bocas 
as soon as sighted in the offing, informed of the 
blockade and warned off, unless laden with coal. 
In that event they were allowed to enter and their 
cargoes taken for our squadron at the current market 
rate. 

Men-of-war of various nationalities soon made 
their appearance. They were allowed to enter with- 
out hindrance other than being boarded to establish 
their identity, thoroughly informed of the actual 
conditions of affairs, given an anchorage off the city, 
and permitted to communicate with their country- 
men and with the Spanish officials. They were al- 



AFTER THE BATTLE 237 

lowed to carry the mails for Manila, and, with a 
single exception, the consideration which I tried to 
show was never abused. Commercially, the block- 
ade was always vigorously enforced, and from May i 
until the surrender of the city on August 13 the 
great trade of Manila was entirely suspended. 

When, on May 4, I sent the McCulloch to Hong 
Kong with my cable reporting the victory ^ the Bos- 
ton and Concord convoyed her beyond the Bocas. 
This precaution, taken in view of the fact that 
there were known to be over twenty Spanish gun- 
boats stationed in various parts of the Philippines, 
was soon deemed unnecessary, and all subsequent 
trips were made without fear of molestation. When 
she returned, on May 11, bringing the news of 
my promotion, with the congratulations of the 
President and the secretary of the navy, the broad 
pennant of a commodore was hauled down and a 
rear-admiral's flag hoisted on board the Olympia. 

Incidentally, I may say that the bundle of con- 
gratulatory cables from chambers of commerce, clubs, 
corporations, and individuals showing the enthusiasm 
at home was even more surprising to my officers than 
to me. There was a feeling in the squadron that, 
after all, we were away from the main theatre of 
war, which was in the Atlantic, where our battle-ship 
squadron was also looking for the Spaniards. Pro- 
fessional opinion sharing none of the public's fear 

1 Appendix B. 



238 GEORGE DEWEY 

of the outcome, we were certain of the decisive suc- 
cess of R ear-Admiral Sampson's squadron in any 
engagement. But I had reminded my officers that 
if ours were really the first blow of the war, it must 
be appreciated at home. In view of the evident 
gratification of the government and the public at 
what we had accomplished, I hastened to recommend 
that Lamberton, my chief of stafi^, and all my cap- 
tains be advanced ten numbers. Their aid had made 
success possible. 

On May 12 an amusing incident occurred. A 
Spanish gun-boat, the Callao, was sighted coming in. 
The Raleigh was promptly under way to overhaul 
her, and, joined by the Olympia and Baltimore, fired 
a few shots before she surrendered. She had sailed 
from some remote spot in the islands where it was 
not known that war existed between the United 
States and Spain, and her commander was utterly 
dumfounded when he was received with shotted guns 
from foreign men-of-war in Spanish waters. 

He was a young fellow, and his crew were mostly 
natives, including only three or four Spaniards. I 
told him that all could take their parole, but he an- 
swered that the Spanish regulations would not permit 
the acceptance of a parole. 

'*You, sir," he said quite dramatically, "who are 
old enough to be my father, advise me what to do 
in this emergency. If I go to Manila saying that I 
have been paroled, I shall be shot." 



AFTER THE BATTLE 239 

"Then you may go without parole," I said, as 
he and his crew would be only an encumbrance as 
prisoners. 

The very next day the Callao, commanded by 
Lieutenant Tappan, was doing duty as a gun-boat 
in our service by boarding vessels off the Bocas. We 
also commissioned the armed transport Manila, 
under command of Lieutenant-Commander Frederic 
Singer. The Barcelo, Rapido, Hercules, and other 
small craft that had been captured were all trans- 
formed into auxiliaries which became valuable on 
patrol and messenger duty. 

My instructions sent by Acting-Secretary Roose- 
velt had said that I was to conduct offensive opera- 
tions in the Philippine Islands. My idea first and 
last was to obey them in spirit and letter until I 
was otherwise ordered. While we remained at war 
with Spain our purpose must be to strike at the 
power of Spain wherever possible. The question of 
making the Philippine Islands United States terri- 
tory was one of policy for the nation at home to 
decide, which had nothing to do with my duties as 
a naval officer. 

When I sent the McCulloch to Hong Kong again, 
on May 13, in my report of conditions I once more 
emphasized the fact that I could take the city at 
any moment; and now I impressed upon the govern- 
ment at home the necessity, if it were our intention 
to occupy Manila, that a force of occupation should 



240 GEORGE DEWEY 

immediately be sent. For this purpose I estimated 
that five thousand well-equipped troops would be 
necessary, and they would have been sufficient if we 
had had to deal alone with the Spaniards and not 
with a native insurrection. We had the city under 
our guns, as Farragut had New Orleans under his. 
But naval power can reach no farther ashore. For 
tenure of the land you must have the man with a 
rifle. 

The position of the squadron was one of peculiar 
isolation. It must be six days by way of Hong Kong 
before I could receive an answer to any communica- 
tion to Washington. The supply ship Zafiro, which 
came to be regularly employed for these trips, inva- 
riably had one of our officers in charge. His author- 
ity gave the vessel an oflficial character, enabling her 
to fly a pennant and insuring her an immunity from 
the many red-tape restrictions and charges to which 
merchant-vessels are subjected. She brought from 
China delicacies which greatly mitigated the dis- 
comforts of blockade duty, with its attendant sea- 
fare. In Manila Bay a little fruit or a few fresh eggs 
might occasionally be purchased from the natives, 
but in such small quantities as to admit of no gen- 
eral distribution. 

In the purchase of supplies, however, the officer 
in charge of the Zafiro had to exercise discretion, and 
particularly in their embarkation. The British au- 
thorities were personally so cordial and so inclined to 



AFTER THE BATTLE 241 

be fair In their construction of the laws of neutrahty 
that I thought we should be very careful, on our side, 
to commit no act that could be misconstrued. Both 
fresh meat and vegetables were bought by Chinese 
compradors from Chinese merchants, and sent off 
to the Zafiro in small quantities under cover of night. 
Happily, we had the fact in our favor that the Brit- 
ish part of Hong Kong harbor only extends to a cer- 
tain limit; beyond this the Chinese authorities have 
control. Therefore the Zafiro could be anchored in 
the Chinese zone whenever she took on board coal 
or provisions. 

Of course the Spanish consul at Hong Kong was 
on the lookout. Indeed, his activity, if it could have 
been transmitted to the Spanish army and navy in 
the Philippines during the period of preparation for 
war, might have made the victory of May i less 
easily won. At one time the British colonial authori- 
ties made a point that our use of the cable for mili- 
tary purposes was a breach of neutrality and could 
not be permitted. Lieutenant Walter McLean, the 
officer then in charge of the Zafiro^ having made 
proper representations in answer, was allowed to be 
the judge or censor of our cablegrams. Thus, all 
that he chose to pass would be accepted and for- 
warded. 

Only by efficient enforcement of the blockade 
could we be certain that no contraband of war reached 
the Spaniards in Manila. The glint of a sail or a 



242 GEORGE DEWEY 

trail of smoke on the horizon was quickly detected 
by our lookout. No sooner was either one reported 
than the signal flags from the Olympia despatched a 
vessel to overhaul and investigate the stranger. 

Upon one occasion a small craft emerged from 
an inlet of the bay and was seen making for Manila. 
The McCulloch, being sent in chase, soon overhauled 
and captured her. She proved to be the Spanish 
gun-boat Leyte, which we immediately utilized for 
our service. She had fled from the scene of action 
on May i, and with some refugees on board had run 
up one of the rivers to the northward and westward of 
the city. Her commander had hoped to escape out 
of the bay by night, but finding us so watchful and 
himself short of provisions and harried by the insur- 
gents, he finally decided to make for Manila, or, fail- 
ing that, to surrender. 

Our squadron was maintained in constant readi- 
ness to resist attack and every ship was prepared 
to get under way at a moment's notice. Many mer- 
chant-steamers, tugs, launches, and coastwise vessels 
wxre lying in the harbor in enforced idleness and avail- 
able for any purpose. Meanwhile, the officers and 
crews of Admiral Montojo's sunken squadron were in 
the city. Presumably they must chafe under the 
recollection of their defeat. The officers had shown 
their courage in battle. It stood to reason that 
they would not hesitate at any desperate undertak- 
ing of the kind that made Cushing's destruction of 



AFTER THE BATTLE 243 

the Albemarle so notable, in order to strike a blow 
for their country. Moreover, they would have the 
technical knowledge essential for the use of torpedoes. 

Indeed, it was inconceivable to our own officers 
that any service could show such professional inert- 
ness as that of the Spaniards during the blockade. 
We were always apprehensive lest their apparent in- 
action was merely a ruse to lull us into a sense of 
security. At all events, it was my duty to take every 
precaution against any form of surprise which I 
would take against the most energetic enemy. 

Meanwhile, I received from time to time alarm- 
ing rumors and reports. On May 20 the insurgents 
brought me circumstantial information that the Span- 
iards would try to recover Cavite by an attack from 
the land side that night. The Petrel and Callao were 
ordered into a position commanding the navy yard, 
and the rest of the squadron was on the qui vive; 
but morning came without a sign of any movement 
on shore. Again, toward the middle of June, there 
was a circumstantial warning of a torpedo attack. 
All preparations were made to receive it. Steam 
was kept up on the small boats, while the Boston, 
Concord, and Callao were sent at 3 a. m. to search 
the waters of the bay in the vicinity of Manila. But, 
as usual, nothing happened. 

It was about this time that our continual watch- 
fulness was actually tested by a German man-of- 
war's steam-launch. This was the first and only 



244 GEORGE DEWEY 

occasion that any launch of the numerous foreign 
men-of-war in the harbor which had gathered to ob- 
serve the operations had approached one of our ves- 
sels after dark; for, naturally, it was known that any 
squadron in time of war will take no risks in allow- 
ing small craft to approach it at night. When the 
German launch was picked up by the search-lights of 
our vessels she continued to advance. Her true nat- 
ure was not readily determined at once, and, as I had 
observed her myself from the quarter-deck, I ordered 
a six-pounder shot fired over her, while the marine 
watch on duty opened a small-arm fire. She stopped, 
and then we identified a small German flag being 
waved by her coxswain. 

A picket was sent to inspect her and to bring her 
officer to the flag-ship. He appeared rather flurried 
by his narrow escape. Apparently he was impressed 
when I informed him of the great danger that any 
small craft ran in approaching a squadron after dark 
in time of war. I expressed the hope that hereafter 
German boats would be sent only during the day, 
as otherwise a distressing accident might unavoidably 
occur. 

Being thus constantly upon the alert by night, 
while by day, in spite of the tropical heat, the crews 
were continually exercised at sub-calibre practice 
and ship drills, and still further taxed by the neces- 
sity of sending working parties on shore to the Ca- 
vite arsenal machine-shops, the intervening months 



AFTER THE BATTLE 245 

between the victory and the occupation of Manila 
by the troops proved very trying to officers and men. 
But they had in mind the fate of the Maine when 
lying at anchor in a Spanish harbor, and there was 
no inclination to relaxation of vigilance on their part. 

As for myself, I have ever been a very early riser. 
I was always about the ship before daylight, while 
Chiefof Staff Lamberton and Flag-Lieutenant Brum- 
by divided the night between them into watches. 
The strain had soon told upon Captain Gridley, and 
on May 25 he was condemned by a medical survey 
and started for home, where he was never to arrive 
alive. Captain Lamberton succeeded him in com- 
mand of the flag-ship, but still remained a close ad- 
viser, while heavier duties devolved upon Brumby, 
to whose unswerving industry, loyalty, and high in- 
telligence I owe an everlasting debt. 

Among the situations with which I had to deal 
promptly as they arose, when I could not delay to 
consult Washington, the most complicated was that 
of the Filipino insurgents. Before the squadron had 
left Hong Kong a cable, dated April 24, had been 
received from our consul-general at Singapore, saying 
that Emilio Aguinaldo, the insurgent chief, was at 
Singapore and would proceed to Hong Kong to see 
me if I so desired. I requested him to come, as it 
was possible that he might have valuable informa- 
tion to impart at a time when no source of informa- 
tion was to be neglected. 



246 GEORGE DEWEY 

He came to Hong Kong, but did not arrive until 
after the departure of our squadron. Upon the first 
visit of the McCulloch to Hong Kong, he and several 
other insurgent leaders applied for transportation to 
Cavite. In the absence of any orders on the sub- 
ject, Lieutenant Brumby refused to grant the re- 
quest, but promised to take up the matter with me. 
On the second trip of the McCulloch I sent Ensign 
Caldwell, with instruction to allow Aguinaldo and 
three or four of his colleagues passage on board her 
to Manila. 

Aguinaldo had been at one time a copyist in the 
Cavite arsenal under the Spanish regime. He was 
not yet thirty, a soft-spoken, unimpressive little man, 
who had enormous prestige with the Filipino people. 
Obviously, as our purpose was to weaken the Span- 
iards in every legitimate way, thus hastening the 
conclusion of hostilities in a war which was made 
to free Cuba from Spanish oppression, operations by 
the insurgents against Spanish oppression in the 
Philippines under certain restrictions would be wel- 
come. Aguinaldo was allowed to establish himself 
in the arsenal, where he opened negotiations with his 
compatriots. . 

Soon, however, the marine officer in charge of the 
guard of the naval station was complaining about 
the constant traversing of his lines by scores of na- 
tives, who, of course, might be friends, but might 
equally well be enemies. As a result, I sent for 




p 






< 
H 

Oh 
< 

U 
>-" r 

Q 



AFTER THE BATTLE 247 

Aguinaldo and informed him that he must leave the 
arsenal, but I would allow him to take up his quar- 
ters in Cavite town. 

From my observation of Aguinaldo and his advis- 
ers I decided that it would be unwise to co-operate 
with him or his adherents in an official manner. 
Aside from permitting him to establish himself ashore, 
the only aid rendered him was a gift of some Mauser 
rifles and an old smooth-bore gun that had been aban- 
doned by the Spanish. He mounted the gun on a 
float, but I declined to grant his request that our 
launches tow it across the bay. In short, my policy 
was to avoid any entangling alliance with the insur- 
gents, while I appreciated that, pending the arrival 
of our troops, they might be of service in clearing 
the long neck of land that stretches out from Cavite 
Peninsula to the environs of Manila.^ 

Their numbers increasing by daily additions, the 
Filipinos slowly but surely drove the Spaniards back 
toward the city. By day we could see their attacks, 
and by night we heard their firing. We had some 
negotiations with them in regard to the disposition 
of Spanish prisoners and the transfer of Spanish 
women and children who had fallen into their hands; 
and again, at the request of the Spanish captain- 
general, Don Basilio Augustin Davila, I asked Agui- 
naldo's good offices in securing free passage through 
the insurgent lines for Don Basilio's own family, 

* Appendix E. 



248 GEORGE DEWEY 

and other Spanish famihes who were cut off from 
Manila. 

His answer expressing his willingness to grant my 
request, if it were in his power, was interesting be- 
cause of its quaint English.^ 

The insurgents fought well. Their success, I 
think, was of material importance in isolating our 
marine force at Cavite from Spanish attack and in 
preparing a foothold for our troops when they should 
arrive. By the end of May they had entirely cleared 
Cavite Province of the enemy, and had so nearly 
surrounded Manila as to cause a panic among the 
inhabitants. The foreign consuls, acting for their 
apprehensive compatriots, now appealed to me to 
allow refugees of the various nationalities to leave 

iGOBIERNO DICTATORIAL 

FILIPINAS 

Kavite, 14th June, 1898. 
Rear-Admiral 

George Dewey, U. S. Navy. 
Dear Sir: 

I would have great satisfaccion in pleasing you what you are ask- 
ing me to allow the free return to Manila some Spanish families resi- 
dent in Pampanga specially the General Mr. B. Augustin's. 

I must remember you that the said Province my forces have not 
taken yet, but only surrounded; reason of which I see the impossi- 
bility to may garantee the free pass that you ask. 

Notwithstanding I give to my subordinates terminat orders that 
as soon as they get in their hands the said families, not only keep the 
habit considerations among the civilizes nations, and also treat them as 
friends and carry them to Manila, as soon as the way will be safed 
from any risk, so as the families and their conveyers and the plan of 
operations would allow. 

I am, Dear Sir, 

Yours respectfully, 

E. Aguinaldo. 



AFTER THE BATTLE 249 

the limits of the city and find asylum under my pro- 
tection. Already, upon application of the British 
consul and of Captain Edward Chichester, of the 
British cruiser Immortalite, the senior British naval 
officer present, I had permitted several Europeans 
and some four hundred and fifty Chinese to embark 
in an English steamer bound for Amoy; and I was 
now equally willing to grant this new request. 

At first I designated Cavite town as a place of 
refuge; but after further consideration I decided that, 
as all the quarters and facilities of Cavite would be 
needed for our own troops upon their arrival, it would 
be better to employ some of the many vessels then 
lying idle off Manila. Accordingly, ten of these were 
chartered by the difi^erent consuls and placed under 
the flags of their respective countries, in charge of 
the different men-of-war assembled off the city. 
Later, three more, one being assigned to the author- 
ity of the British, one to the French, and one to the 
German men-of-war, were added for the Spanish 
women and children. 

I was also glad to consent to the request of the 
Spanish authorities that a number of their wounded 
then in a military hospital at Guadalupe should be 
transferred to a ship in the bay in charge of Cap- 
tain Chichester; and through my good offices the 
insurgents who held the territory between this hospi- 
tal and the sea allowed the wounded to pass through 
the lines for embarkation. It was my aim to do 



2SO GEORGE DEWEY 

everything consistent with military wisdom to mini- 
mize the rigor of the blockade. 

As early as May i6 the navy department had 
informed me that the Charleston and transports with 
troops would soon be despatched. A week later the 
Peking^ Australia^ and City of Sidney, with a force 
of twenty-five hundred men under command of Brig- 
adier-General Anderson, sailed from San Francisco 
for Honolulu, bringing for the squadron a supply 
of ammunition which I had earnestly requested. 
After the depletion of our magazines and shell-rooms 
by the battle, I felt the inevitable solicitude of 
any commander in the midst of war who is without 
sufficient ammunition to meet the emergencies of an 
engagement. This solicitude developed into anxiety 
when not only had Spain despatched a stronger naval 
force than my own, with a view to retrieving the 
disaster of May i, but another nation was gathering 
a powerful squadron in Manila Bay. 

The effect of the victory had precipitated a new 
element in the mastery of the Pacific and in the in- 
ternational rivalry for trade advantage in the popu- 
lous Orient. Hitherto the United States had been 
considered a second-class power, whose foreign policy 
was an unimportant factor beyond the three-mile 
limit of the American hemisphere. By a morning's 
battle we had secured a base in the Far East at a 
juncture in international relations when the parcel- 
ling out of China among the European powers seemed 



I 



AFTER THE BATTLE 251 

imminent. This intrusion of an outsider could hardly 
be welcome in any quarter where there was opposi- 
tion to the poHcy of the "open door" and the integ- 
rity of China which was advocated by us. 

I knew that the intervention of any third power 
or group of powers while Sampson had yet to engage 
Cervera, or in the critical event of any set-back to 
our arms, might have brought grave consequences 
for us, while the Philippines were a rich prize for 
any ambitious power; or, if they remained Spanish, 
they were still under the sovereignty of a nation 
which could hardly be expected to play an impor- 
tant part in the affairs of China. 



CHAPTER XVII 
A PERIOD OF ANXIETY 

At a dinner given me at the White House upon 
my return home President McKinley mentioned the 
repeated statements in the press about the friction 
in my relations with Vice-Admiral von Diedrichs, in 
command of the German Asiatic Squadron. 

"There is no record of it at all on the files/' he 
said. 

''No, Mr. President," I answered. "As I was 
on the spot and familiar with the situation from day 
to day, it seemed best that I look after it myself, at 
a time when you had worries enough of your own." 

Every officer who had served in the Civil War 
had had some experience with blockade, and some 
observation, if not experience, of the international 
questions which it had precipitated. Moreover, in- 
ternational law had been one of my favorite studies. 
Before the declaration of war with Spain I had not 
only considered the preparations for the battle, but 
my position in the event of victory. (In the event 
of defeat no ship of our Asiatic Squadron would have 
been afloat to tell the story.) 

I foresaw that I must establish a blockade, cut- 

252 



A PERIOD OF ANXIETY 253 

ting off the enemy's commerce as the first natural 
step in weakening the enemy. Inevitably the for- 
eign nations would send their men-of-war to the bay 
for purposes of observation. During the Civil War 
English and French cruisers were always going and 
coming up and down the coast to see if the blockade 
were being maintained. There was rarely more than 
one, and never more than two off one port at a time. 
The appearance of a British or a French naval force 
larger than Dahlgren's off Charleston, or larger than 
Farragut's off Mobile, would have been considered a 
serious demonstration. I must maintain the block- 
ade of Manila thoroughly and impartially if I were 
to avoid remonstrances. This I aimed to do from 
the moment of its establishment. 

One might have thought that the activity shown 
by each foreign power would be regulated by the ex- 
tent of its commercial interests and the number of 
its subjects on shore. The British had an overwhelm- 
ing preponderance in trade, in investment, and in 
the number of their subjects resident In the Philip- 
pines. They had the largest naval force in Far East- 
ern waters of any power. But they never had more 
than three ships in Manila Bay at one time during 
the blockade. 

In view of my isolation from a home base, and 
a desire to avoid any difficulties which should cause / 

the government concern, it was bound to be a mat- 
ter of policy, if not of personal predilection, to allow 



254 GEORGE DEWEY 

visiting naval vessels every privilege consistent with 
the principles of international law in relation to neu- 
trals. As I have previously stated, they were al- 
lowed to enter the bay without any requirement 
other than the simple formality of being boarded, 
In order to establish their identity, to inform them 
of the condition of affairs, and to assign them an 
anchorage where they would not be in the way of 
operations if I had to engage the enemy's batteries 
or defend the squadron from any improvised night 
torpedo attack. 

Among the early arrivals of foreign men-of-war, 
besides the British ships Linnet (May 2) and hn- 
mortalite (May 7), were the French cruiser Brieux 
(May 5), the Japanese cruiser Itsukushima (May 10), 
and the German cruisers Irene (May 6) and Cor- 
moran (May 9). Our flag-ship was off Cavite, our 
colors were flying over the Cavite naval station, and 
our authority was paramount in the bay. In view 
of these facts, the British, French, and Japanese saw 
and acted on the obvious propriety — as foreign men- 
of-war did in the Civil War — of reporting to the 
commander-in-chief of the blockading force and ask- 
ing where they should anchor. 

The Irene had come from Nagasaki. Although 
she may not have heard the news of the victory be- 
fore leaving Japan, she definitely had the infor- 
mation from an English steamer the morning of her 
arrival. Nevertheless, she steamed by the Olympia 



A PERIOD OF ANXIETY 255 

without stopping and dropped anchor where she 
chose. 

I regarded this as an oversight which was a 
breach of naval etiquette, of course, but not to be 
taken seriously unless I were inclined to insist on 
punctiliousness. It was only natural to reason that 
the captain of the Irene might not be familiar with 
the customs and the laws of blockades. I knew the 
German naval officers were very self-reliant, keen to 
take offence about their rights, and most ambitious 
to learn by observation, which I always liked to 
think explained their subsequent proceedings. On 
my part, despite the exaggerated reports which 
should be set at rest, let me repeat that my only 
object was enforcement of the blockade in such a 
manner as should safeguard my squadron, and leave 
no room for complaint of favoritism. 

The second German ship, the Cormoran, came in 
at three in the morning. Naturally, at night it was 
our business to be on the alert. When her lights 
were seen a steam launch was sent to board her. 
She gave no heed to the steam launch's hail. Even 
though a man-of-war flew a German flag, it was pos- 
sible that she was Spanish, using the German flag as 
a ruse. According to the laws of blockade it was 
our right and duty to board and identify her. 

In order to get the attention of the Corvioran the 
Raleigh fired a shot across her bows. Then she 
promptly came to. Her captain was surprised at 



256 GEORGE DEWEY 

our action, but our boarding officer explained the 
law, and also the risk that a man-of-war was running 
in coming into the harbor at night. We had no 
thought of being discourteous and no desire to rouse 
any ill feeling, and fully appreciated how our point 
of view had not occurred to the captain of the Cor- 
moran when he ran straight in toward our squadron 
in the dark. The shot across the bow was not pro- 
vocative, but simply a form of signal when other 
signals had failed. 

As early as May 20 the navy department had 
cabled me that the Carlos V, Pelayo^ and Aljonso II 
and some transports were reported to have left Spain 
for the East. I replied that in event of their arrival 
our squadron would endeavor to give a good account 
of itself. On May 27 and 30 I received further cables 
announcing that the monitors Monterey and Monad- 
nock would be sent to reinforce me. 

On the 1 2th Vice-Admiral von Diedrichs arrived 
in his flag-ship, the Kaiserm Augusta. This made 
three German cruisers in the harbor. I learned that 
another was expected. Already, on the 6th, a Ger- 
man transport, the Darmstadt, bringing fourteen 
hundred men as relief crews for the German vessels, 
had appeared. Such a transfer, for which I readily 
gave permission, while it might have been unusual 
in a blockaded harbor, might at the same time be 
easily explained as a matter of convenience for the 
German squadron which was absent from its regu- 



A PERIOD OF ANXIETY 257 

lar base at Kiau Chau. The Darmstadt, however, 
with her force of men nearly equal to the total 
number of my own crews, remained at anchor for 
four weeks. 

As my rank was inferior to Vice-Admiral von 
Diedrichs's, I made the first call, in the usual ex- 
change of visits. In the course of conversation I 
referred to the presence of the large German force 
and to the Hmited German interests in the Philip- 
pines (there was only one German commercial house 
in Manila), and this in a courteous manner, amount- 
ing to a polite inquiry which I thought was war- 
ranted, particularly in view of the fact that six days 
had elapsed without the Darmstadt transferring her 
men. To this the vice-admiral answered: 

"I am here by order of the Kaiser, sir"; from 
which I could only infer that I had expressed myself 
in a way that excited his displeasure. 

In the course of a cable to the navy department 
on June 12 I requested that the Monadnock and 
Monterey be expedited. Meanwhile, I had heard 
nothing further of the reports of the departure of a 
Spanish squadron to the Far East, which I might 
set down as a rumor that had been unconfirmed. 

In a cable of June 18 from Washington, which 
was brought to Manila by the McCulloch, which 
had taken mine of the 12th, I was informed that 
Camara's squadron, consisting of "two armored 
cruisers, six converted cruisers, four destroyers, re- 



258 GEORGE DEWEY 

ported off Ceuta, sailing to the East, by the United 
States consul at Gibraltar. If they pass Suez, 
Egypt, will cable you. The Monterey and collier 
sailed for Manila from San Diego on June ii. The 
Monadnock and collier will follow on June 20, if 
possible. . . ." 

Within a week there were five German men-of- 
war in the port, two of them having a heavier dis- 
placement than any of my own ships. The Kaiser 
came in after dark on June 18. She paid no atten- 
tion to the launch sent to board her. However, the 
next morning she steamed over to Cavite and for- 
mally reported her arrival. 

My idea of the Spaniards was that at the first 
sign of the offensive in any direction Camara would 
take the defensive. In answer to the announcement 
that he had sailed I cabled the department from 
Hong Kong, June 27, that in my judgment "if the 
coast of Spain were threatened the squadron of the 
enemy would have to return." Peculiarly enough, 
this reached the department a few hours after the 
board of strategy had advised that Commodore 
Watson be sent with a squadron to make the demon- 
stration on the coast of Spain, which it was never 
necessary for him to undertake. 

On the 26th Camara was at Port Said, from which 
his arrival was reported to me as promptly as the in- 
formation could reach me when I was three days from 
any working cable station. He had the two power- 



A PERIOD OF ANXIETY 259 

ful cruisers Pelayo, of 9,000 tons, and Carlos Vy of 
9,200 tons, while the total displacement of my whole 
squadron was only 19,098 tons. They were so well 
protected as to be in the armored class. They had 
two 12.6-inch and four ii-inch guns, while my largest 
calibre was 8-inch. Alone, they were an equal an- 
tagonist for my squadron. 

Therefore, my desire for the prompt arrival of at 
least one of the monitors was even more keen than 
when I had expressed it in the cable of June 12. On 
account of their low freeboard, scarcely meant for 
transoceanic cruises, the monitors must make very 
slow progress. But once the Monterey arrived I had 
an armored vessel with two 12 and two 10 inch guns, 
which, though it could mancEuvre at only eight knots, 
was able to deliver telling blows and withstand a fire 
which would have been most damaging to my un- 
armored cruisers. 

With a superior squadron of the enemy coming, 
with the many perplexities of the blockade, while I 
waited on the arrival of the monitors and the trans- 
ports with troops, the latter days of June were full 
of care for myself and staff. In every cable from 
Washington we looked for fresh news about Camara 
and hoped for decisive action by our troops and our 
squadron at Santiago which would effectually dispose 
of Cervera's squadron, thus leaving Admiral Samp- 
son's ships ready for any fresh emergency. Once 
Camara was past Suez, with sufficient coal for the 



26o GEORGE DEWEY 

rest of the cruise, there could be no question but 
that I must be prepared to engage him. 

Characteristic of bold journalism was the direc- 
tion of Mr. Hearst to one of his staff to sink a ship 
in the canal to delay Camara, which, however, his 
subordinate did not carry out. Mr. Watts, our 
consul-general at Cairo, was most active in his repre- 
sentations to Lord Cromer, the British adviser of the 
Egyptian government, for the enforcement of the 
neutrality laws. Thanks to his efforts and those of 
Ambassador Hay, in London, the Egyptian govern- 
ment prohibited the sale of coal to the Spanish vessels 
other than enough to take them back to Spain, and 
limited their stay in port to the usual period of 
twenty-four hours. 

However, even after this decision by the Egyp- 
tian government, Camara remained at Port Said for 
some days attempting to purchase coal, and, upon 
this being refused him, to transship coal from his own 
colliers. He also tried to enlist a force of stokers, 
but Mr. Watts*s renewed remonstrances brought 
forth a peremptory order for him to depart at once. 

After passing through the canal he made a stop 
at Suez, but being warned off he left the harbor and 
anchored five miles offshore, where he was well out- 
side the three-mile limit and thus free of Egyptian 
authority. He was still in condition to continue his 
voyage, it being an easy matter for him to have coaled 
from his colliers in the smooth waters of some of the 



A PERIOD OF ANXIETY 261 

ports of the Red Sea, where neutrality restrictions 
would not have been enforced. 

In the event that Camara should arrive before 
the Monterey, as I had reason at one time to fear 
that he would, my plan was not to wait in Manila 
Bay for him, as Montojo had waited for our squadron, 
but to take up my position in the southern part of 
the Philippine archipelago, from which I should have 
steamed out to strike the enemy's ships, hopefully 
by surprise, when they were hampered by their trans- 
ports, thus throwing them into disorder at the out- 
set of the engagement. One source of great confi- 
dence lay in my veteran crews. They had already 
fought the Spaniards in one battle. 

But the necessity of another action was averted. 
The department had cabled on June 29: "Squadron 
under Watson, Iowa, Oregon, Yankee, Dixie, Newark, 
and Yosemite and four colliers, preparing with all pos- 
sible despatch to start Spanish coast. The Span- 
iards know this.'* The knowledge had the effect in- 
tended. On July 8, after the victory of Santiago, 
when the whole of Sampson's squadron was free to 
go to the coast of Spain, Camara's squadron re-en- 
tered the Suez Canal, and on July 11 it left Port 
Said for Cartagena. Meanwhile, on June 30, the 
transports with the first lot of our troops had ar- 
rived. They were escorted by the cruiser Charles- 
ton, which was a valuable reinforcement to my squad- 
ron and brought the supply of ammunition which 
was vitally important if I were to engage Camara. 



262 GEORGE DEWEY 

In the latter part of June and the early days of 
July the Germans, with the industry with which 
they aim to make their navy efficient, were keeping 
very busy. I saw that they did not mean to accept 
my interpretation of the laws of blockade. German 
officers frequently landed in Manila, where they 
were on the most cordial terms with the Span- 
iards, who paid them marked attention; and, the 
wish fathering the thought, the talk of the town was 
that the Germans would intervene in favor of Spain. 
It was well known that Vice-Admiral von Diedrichs 
had officially visited the Spanish captain-general in 
Manila, who had returned the call at night. No 
other senior foreign naval officer had exchanged visits 
with the captain-general. Other Spanish officials 
called on the Germans and were saluted by the Ger- 
man vessels, these salutes being returned by the 
Spanish batteries on shore; but they did not call on 
the other senior officers present so far as I know, 
and certainly were not saluted if they did. One 
foreign consul in Manila, I know, had orders from 
his government to report the actions of the Germans 
in cipher. 

Not only did the German officers frequently visit 
the Spanish troops and outposts, thus familiarizing 
themselves with the environs of Manila, but a Prince 
Lowenstein was taken off to the Kaiserin Augusta 
by one of Aguinaldo's staff. This came to our knowl- 
edge through the fact that the prince and his escort 
had to seek refuge on board an English man-of-war 



A PERIOD OF ANXIETY 263 

in a heavy sea. German man-of-war boats took 
soundings off Malabon and the mouth of the Pasig 
River, and German seamen were sent to occupy the 
hght-house at the mouth of the Pasig for some days. 

These extracts from the Olympias log are illu- 
minating as to the activities of the German ships 
which were continually cruising about the bay and 
running in and out: 

"June 27 — Irene returned from Mariveles. Dur- 
ing first watch at night saw searchlight at entrance 
of bay. Kaiserin Augusta got under way from Ma- 
nila anchorage and stood down the bay. 

"June 28 — Kaiser came in. 

"June 29 — Irene got under way, steamed about 
the upper bay and returned. Later again left the 
harbor. Prinze ss JVilhelm came in and anchored. 
Cormoran got under way and stood down to Mari- 
veles. 

"June 30 — Kaiserin Augusta came in and an- 
chored off Manila. Callao was sent over to Manila 
to board her. Trinidad with coal for German Squad- 
ron arrived. 

"July I — Cormoran and Prinzess Wilhelm came in. 

"July 2 — Cormoran and German collier left. 

"July 3 — Kaiser left harbor." 

Finally, without my permission, they landed their 
men for drill at Mariveles harbor opposite Corregi- 
dor and Boca Chica at the entrance to the bay and 
took possession of the quarantine station, while 



264 GEORGE DEWEY 

Admiral von Diedrichs occupied a large house which 
had been the quarters of the Spanish officials. On 
July 5 I hoisted my flag on the McCulloch and 
steamed around the German ships anchored in Mari- 
veles, without, however, communicating with the 
German admiral, while I trusted that he might under- 
stand that I did not view his proceeding with favor. 

On the 6th I was informed by the insurgents that 
the Germans had been interfering with their opera- 
tions against the Spaniards in Subig Bay. This was, 
of course, contrary to my policy to allow the insur- 
gents to weaken the Spaniards as far as possible, and 
it was, besides, a breach of neutrality by a neutral 
power. I despatched the Raleigh and Concord to 
Subig to inquire into the truth of this report. They 
found a force of Spanish troops intrenched on Isla 
Grande, and under siege by the insurgents. There 
was not a German subject in the place. When the 
German cruiser Irene appeared her captain had vis- 
ited the Spaniards and then informed the insurgents 
that they might not use a small steamer which was 
in their possession to assist in their operations against 
the Spaniards. However, when the Raleigh and Con- 
cord steamed into the harbor at daylight the Irene 
promptly steamed out. 

Captain J. B. Coghlan, of the Raleigh, being the 
senior officer present, concluded that Isla Grande, on 
account of its strategic importance in commanding 
the entrance to Subig Bay (which might furnish 



A PERIOD OF ANXIETY 265 

Camara a refuge if he should escape us), ought not to 
be In the possession of the enemy. After we fired 
a few shots from the Hght guns of the two cruisers 
the Spaniards, six officers and five hundred men, sur- 
rendered. As Coghlan had no means of caring for 
the prisoners, he turned them over temporarily to 
the insurgents, with express instructions that they 
must be well treated. 

Even before our flag was flying over Isla Grande, 
although we had not yet received the news, Ameri- 
cans at home were rejoicing over our naval victory 
at Santiago and Camara had been recalled to Spain. 
I was glad of an opportunity of stating my own posi- 
tion with perfect candor to Admiral von Diedrichs, 
yet in a diplomatic fashion which could not be per- 
sonally off^ensive to him, however positive he was in 
his views about the rights of neutrals in a blockaded 
port. Already there had been a correspondence be- 
tween us in which, in keeping with the accepted au- 
thorities on international law,^ including the German 
Perels, who had lectured at the Imperial German 
Naval Academy at Kiel, I maintained my right of 
blockade in boarding all vessels, including men-of- 
war. Or, in my own words, in one letter to Vice- 
Admiral von Diedrichs: 

"As a state of war exists between the United 
States and Spain, and as the entry into this block- 
aded port of the vessels of war of a neutral is per- 

• Appendix F. 



266 GEORGE DEWEY 

mitted by the blockading squadron as a matter of 
international courtesy, such neutrals should neces- 
sarily satisfy the blockading vessels as to their iden- 
tity. I distinctly disclaim any intention of exercis- 
ing or claiming the droit de visite of neutral vessels of 
war. What I do claim is the right to communicate 
with all vessels entering this port, now blockaded 
with the forces under my command. It could easily 
be possible that it was the duty of the picket vessel 
to notify incoming men-of-war that they could not 
enter the port, not on account of the blockade, but 
the intervention of my lines of attack." 

Vice-Admiral von Diedrichs, in denial of the right, 
had notified us that he would submit the point to a 
conference of all the senior officers of the men-of-war 
in the harbor. But only one officer appeared. Cap- 
tain Chichester, of the British hnmortalite. He in- 
formed the German commander that I was acting en- 
tirely within my rights; that he had instructions 
from his government to comply with even more rig- 
orous restrictions than I had laid down; and, more- 
over, that as the senior British officer present he had 
passed the word that all British men-of-war upon 
entering the harbor should first report to me and 
fully satisfy any inquiries on my part before proceed- 
ing to the anchorage of the foreign fleet. 

However, Vice-Admiral von Diedrichs was un- 
convinced. When, later, the Cormorant which was 
an old offender, was sighted coming up the bay 



A PERIOD OF ANXIETY 267 

Flag-Lieutenant Brumby was sent to make sure that 
she stopped to report, in keeping with the custom of 
other foreign men-of-war. When the Cormoran saw 
the McCulloch approaching she turned and steamed 
toward the northern part of the bay, compelHng the 
McCulloch to follow. Brumby first hoisted the in- 
ternational signal, "I wish to communicate." No 
attention was paid to this by the Cormoran. Then 
Brumby fired a shot across her bows, which had the 
desired effect. 

On the following day Vice-Admiral von Diedrichs 
sent a capable, tactful young oflficer of his staff to 
me with a memorandum of grievances. When I had 
heard them through I made the most of the occasion 
by using him as a third person to state candidly and 
firmly my attitude in a verbal message which he 
conveyed to his superior so successfully that Vice- 
Admiral von Diedrichs was able to understand my 
point of view. There was no further interference 
with the blockade or breach of the etiquette which 
had been established by the common consent of the 
other foreign commanders. Thus, as I explained 
to the President, after the war was over, a difference 
of opinion about international law had been ad- 
justed amicably, without adding to the sum of his 
worries. 



CHAPTER XVIII 

THE TAKING OF MANILA 

On the way across the Pacific the bloodless capt- 
ure of Guam was effected by the first expeditionary 
force. Brigadier-General Anderson, who was in com- 
mand, had his troops quartered ashore soon after his 
arrival. On July 17 a second contingent of thirty-six 
hundred men came in under command of Brigadier- 
General Francis V. Greene. The next day they 
were landed at Paranaque, a position more than 
half-way between Cavite and Manila, which the in- 
surgents had reached in their persistent advance. 
The captured vessels Rapido and Isabel and some 
cascoes (lighters), which I had obtained for the pur- 
pose, were utilized in landing General Greene's 
command, while the gun-boat Callao covered the dis- 
embarkation which was not in any way opposed, as 
the Spaniards kept to their agreement with me and 
made no demonstration during the operation. 

Within three days the whole force, with their 
provisions, equipage, ammunition, and field-guns, 
were all in camp on some open ground protected on 
one side by the beach and on the other by rice 
paddy fields and dense tropical undergrowth. Al- 
though within range of the Spanish artillery, they 

268 



THE TAKING OF MANILA 269 

were beyond that of the Spanish rifles and without 
any interference by the Spaniards were able to settle 
down to the business of accustoming themselves to 
the heat, insect life, and torrential rains of their new 
surroundings. 

Manila at this time was garrisoned by some 
thirteen thousand troops, stationed either within the 
fortifications or in the lines of trenches and defensive 
works around the city. The insurgents had been at 
work only two months with an organization of the 
flimsiest character, yet by means of guerilla warfare, 
developed from years of experience in their resistance 
to Spanish domination, had not only advanced their 
lines along the beach almost to the fortifications, 
but had invested the city on the inland side as well. 
Thanks to their advance, we were able to land our 
troops within easy striking distance of their objective. 
When Major-General Merritt arrived on July 25 
to take supreme command of the army, he agreed 
with me that it was not good policy to make any 
movement that would precipitate a conflict with the 
Spaniards or tend to bring on a general engagement 
before the chosen moment for a combined attack. 
My wishes were rather emphatic on this subject, and 
rightly so, I still think. I was already conducting 
negotiations with the Spanish captain-general which 
I felt sure would result in a practically peaceful sur- 
render of Manila, with a saving of life on both sides. 
However, with two armed forces facing each other 



270 GEORGE DEWEY 

in time of war it is difficult to prevent a clash; and 
it was not long before the inevitable happened. 
General Merritt decided that the attack should be 
made along the shore, and also that the insurgents, 
who were between our troops and the Spaniards, 
must be drawn to one side. His instructions, in com- 
mon with mine, were to avoid all sign of alliance with 
the insurgents. Therefore, without holding any di- 
rect communication with Aguinaldo, he directed Gen- 
eral Greene to persuade the Filipinos to move out 
of the way. This Greene tactfully accomplished, 
and our men soon occupied part of the trenches built 
by the insurgents. Had they remained in this posi- 
tion there might have been no bloodshed. But on 
the plea that these trenches were not well located 
they pushed ahead and began fortifying themselves 
in a new position nearer Fort San Antonio, garrisoned 
by the Spaniards, which was only a thousand yards 
distant. 

This work was continued for three days before 
the Spaniards made a move of any kind. Then they 
appeared to realize that a new line of intrenchments 
three hundred yards in length, much more formi- 
dable than the shallow rifle-pits used by the insur- 
gents, was becoming a serious menace to the fort, 
and on the night of July 31 they suddenly opened 
fire on our troops. 

To our naval officers, thoroughly accustomed to 
such night alarms, this firing as heard out on the 



THE TAKING OF MANILA 271 

bay seemed only a habitual proceeding between 
the Spaniards and the insurgents. But to our raw 
volunteers the sudden burst of bullets in the midst of 
intense darkness, blinding rain, and flooded trenches 
and generally exotic surroundings formed a real test 
of discipline and courage. The Spaniards made no 
advance. Their efforts were entirely confined to the 
rifle and artillery fire, which continued for two hours. 
Our volunteers stood their ground during their bap- 
tism of fire with the nonchalance of veterans, and 
suffered a loss of ten killed and thirty wounded. 

Meanwhile, in anticipation of some such affair 
as a result of my observation of the course of events 
ashore, I had directed that the Boston should anchor 
near our camp, less than a mile from shore. The 
captain was instructed to open fire if so requested 
by General Greene. At the same time I strongly 
expressed my desire that this should be avoided un- 
less considered absolutely necessary. 

A less experienced officer than General Greene 
might have readily been misled into thinking the 
situation alarming; but, fortunately, and much to 
my satisfaction, he did not call upon the Boston for 
assistance. Three more of these night attacks oc- 
curred during the ensuing week; but in keeping 
with our mutual understanding. General Merritt had 
given positive orders that the Spanish fire should not 
be returned unless the Spaniards left their works to 
attack us. This order was not implicitly obeyed, as 



272 GEORGE DEWEY 

it was finally impossible to restrain our spirited in- 
fantry from returning some of the compliments which 
they were receiving from the enemy. 

On July 31 Brigadier-General Arthur MacArthur 
with four thousand additional troops arrived, and 
after some delay, owing to bad weather and a heavy 
surf, they were added to the numbers under General 
Greene's command. Three days before this was ef- 
fected, however, on August 4, the Monterey steamed 
into the harbor, and with her as a reinforcement my 
squadron was stronger than any squadron in the bay. 

Our troops were now chafing at restraint. They 
could see no reason for further delay. Even General 
Greene earnestly requested that the attack should be 
delivered forthwith. However, I pointed out to him 
the risk and loss of prestige in a premature attack, 
arguing that neither the army nor the navy was 
ready for an engagement. The storm which had de- 
layed the landing of MacArthur's brigade had also 
prevented the landing of ammunition, of which there 
was a shortage on shore, while the Monterey after her 
long voyage needed a few days' overhauling. More- 
over, I was sanguine of the successful issue to nego- 
tiations for a peaceful capitulation which I had ini- 
tiated with the Spanish captain-general through the 
medium of M. Edouard Andre, the Belgian consul 
in Manila. 

Owing to the restriction of the blockade and to 
the investment of the city on the land side by the in- 



THE TAKING OF MANILA 273 

surgents, the people of Manila were in a bad way for 
supplies. Soon after the victory of May i, as I have 
already stated, General Don Basilio Augustin Davila, 
through the British consul, Mr. Rawson-Walker, had 
intimated to me his willingness to surrender to our 
squadron. But at that time I could not entertain 
the proposition because I had no force with which 
to occupy the city, and I would not for a moment 
consider the possibility of turning it over to the un- 
disciplined insurgents, who, I feared, might wreak 
their vengeance upon the Spaniards and indulge in 
a carnival of loot. 

During July the British consul was very ill. His 
death, in fact, occurred early in August. When the 
negotiations with the captain-general tending to a 
surrender were again broached it was M. Andre who 
acted as intermediary, transmitting all messages (al- 
ways verbal ones) from the captain-general to me 
and from me to the captain-general. I was almost 
alone in believing in the sincerity of these negotia- 
tions. General Merritt was sceptical, but ready to 
defer to my judgment, and so were my chief of staff 
and my flag-lieutenant. Nevertheless, I felt con- 
fident of the outcome, in which I consider that I 
was fully justified by later events. 

While M. Andre's work had begun with Don 
Basilio on July 24, a cable from Madrid had sum- 
marily dismissed Don Basilio from office, with orders 
to turn over his authority to General Firmin Jau- 



274 GEORGE DEWEY 

denes. This cable presumably was sent to the Span- 
ish consul in Hong Kong, whence it was transmit- 
ted through the mails, reaching Don Basilio about 
August I. It was in reply to a message from Don 
Basilio to the home government, in which he had 
pointed out the critical condition of affairs in Manila 
and the hopelessness of its defence, the exhausted 
state of his troops, the shortness of provisions in the 
city, the rapid augmentation of the American forces, 
and the utter despair that existed on all sides since 
the receipt of the news of Camara's return to Spain. 
In view of these considerations he declined the re- 
sponsibility of the situation, and the government's 
answer was his relief from command. 

However, Andre continued with General Jaudenes 
the negotiations begun with Don Basilio. These 
progressed with varying success and numerous side 
issues, but always with the stipulation on the part 
of the Spaniards that if they surrendered the insur- 
gents should be kept out of the city. Finally, with- 
out making any definite promise, General Jaudenes 
agreed that, although he would not surrender except 
in consequence of an attack upon the city, yet, unless 
the city were bombarded, the Manila batteries would 
not open on our ships. Moreover, once the attack 
was begun he would, if willing to surrender, hoist a 
white flag over a certain point in the walled city 
from which it could be seen both from Malate and 
from the bay. 



THE TAKING OF MANILA 275 

In other words, his attitude differed from that of 
Don BasiUo only in that he wished to show the form 
of resistance for the sake of Spanish honor; or, as 
the Chinese say, to "save his face." 

It was also understood that before this white 
flag was shown the Olympia should fly the interna- 
tional code signal "D. W. H. B.," meaning "Sur- 
render," and a sketch of the signal flags to be hoisted 
was given by M. Andre to General Jaudenes. Al- 
though there were some further negotiations con- 
cerning the terms of surrender, nothing was defi- 
nitely agreed upon; while it was impressed on General 
Jaudenes that the generosity of the terms granted 
would depend upon the brevity of his resistance. 
Indeed, these pourparlers continued until the day 
before the capture of the city. 

At first General Merritt and myself decided upon 
August 10 as the date of the attack. On the 7th we 
sent the usual forty-eight hours' notice preparatory 
to a bombardment to General Jaudenes. ^ He an- 
swered that, being surrounded by insurgent forces, 
he had no place of refuge for the wounded and sick 
and the women and children except within the walls 
of the city. In reply we pointed out how helpless 
was his position and how clearly it was his duty to 
save the city from the horrors of bombardment. He 
demurred and begged time in which to consult his 
government, a request which was promptly refused. 

1 Appendix G. 



276 GEORGE DEWEY 

In keeping with our assurance on the 7th that 
the city would not be fired upon for at least forty- 
eight hours the desultory firing between the infan- 
try forces on either side ceased. On the 9th the 
foreign men-of-war and the refugee steamers under 
their charge were notified to shift their anchorages 
so as to be out of the line of fire. It was noticeable 
that while the German and French vessels took up a 
position to the northward of the city, the English 
and Japanese came over to Cavite and anchored near 
our squadron. Later in the day the Concord and 
Petrel were sent over in the vicinity of the German 
vessels. On the following morning they closed in to 
within one mile of the breakwater at the mouth of 
the Pasig River. This position they maintained 
until the city surrendered. 

On the morning of the loth all preparations were 
complete for any emergency. Boats and extra gear 
had been sent on shore to the arsenal. The ships 
were cleared for action with steam up, and waited 
only on the word to get under way. But the signal 
run up to the Olympias yard-arm was, *'The attack 
is postponed." General Merritt had come on board 
the flag-ship to report that the army was not quite 
ready. 

However, on the 12th it was announced that the 
attack would be delivered upon the following morn- 
ing. The 13 th dawned as a typical Manila day, 
after intervals of rain during the night. The air was 



THE TAKING OF MANILA 277 

lifeless, the thermometer in the 8o's, and everything 
was steaming with humid heat. But at eight o'clock 
the sky partially cleared and a light breeze sprang up. 
At 8.45 the ships got under way and moved in to 
their stations — the Charleston, Boston, and Baltimore 
off the Luneta battery, the Monterey farther inshore 
and nearer the batteries of the city proper, the Con- 
cord off the mouth of the Pasig, and the Olympia, 
Raleigh, and Petrel, with the Callao and McCulloch, 
opposite the Malate fort, where they could not only 
reduce the fort but enfilade the Spanish lines. 

As we got under way the officers and men of the 
British ship Immortalite crowded on the deck, her 
guard was paraded, and her band played "Under the 
Double Eagle," which was known to be my favorite 
march. Then, as we drew away from the anchor- 
age from which for over three months we had watched 
the city and bay. Captain Chichester got under 
way also and with the Immortalite and the Iphigenia 
steamed over toward the city and took up a position 
which placed his vessels between ours and those of 
the foreign fleet. We broke our battle flags from the 
mast-heads with the conviction that we were to see 
the end of the story which we had begun when they 
were broken out on the morning of May i. 

At 9.35 the Olympia, Raleigh, Petrel, and Callao 
opened fire on Fort San Antonio, on the flank of the 
Spanish intrenchments, which was continued slowly 
for about an hour, without any response from the 
fort. Meanwhile, we could see our troops on shore 



278 GEORGE DEWEY 

advancing through the fields and along the beach. 
As they came Into view, sturdily breasting their way 
through the shallow water and meeting all obstacles 
with enthusiastic cheering, the flag-ship signalled to 
cease firing, and shortly afterward, followed by the 
Raleigh and Petrel, steamed to the northward to as- 
sume a position off the town. With the Callao, under 
Lieutenant Tappan, and the little Barcelo, in charge 
of Naval Cadet White, keeping ahead of them and 
sweeping the beach and Spanish trenches with their 
machine guns, the troops gallantly rushed to the 
assault and soon were seen swarming over the para- 
pet of Fort San Antonio. At 10.35 the Spanish colors 
disappeared from the fort and our own were hoisted. 

In the meantime the other vessels of the squadron 
had awaited developments in their position command- 
ing the heavy batteries of the city itself. Few on 
board, and, indeed, few of the junior officers of the 
army, had any inkling of an agreement with the 
Spaniards, so that all were firmly convinced that they 
were going into action. But my captains were di- 
rected not to fire unless fired upon, and not one of 
the enemy's thirty-nine heavy guns having the range 
of our ships was discharged. 

As the Olympia and her consorts approached the 
other vessels the flag-ship was flying the international 
signal "D. W. H. B." for "Surrender"; but, although 
sharp eyes on the bridge of the flag-ship scrutinized 
the forts for a sign of the return signal, the back- 
ground was so indefinite that for a time nothing was 



THE TAKING OF MANILA 279 

sighted. Finally, however, it was my fortune to be 
the first to make out a white flag flying on the ap- 
pointed place on the southwest bastion of the city 
wall. Our own signal had been hoisted at 11 a. m., 
and it was not until 11.20 that we distinguished the 
answer. 

Flag-Lieutenant Brumby and Colonel Whittier, 
of General Merritt's staff, with M. Andre, were now 
landed in the city and were met by General Jaudenes 
and Admiral Montojo, and the preliminary articles 
of capitulation were promptly drawn up.^ General 
Jaudenes had saved his honor by a formal show of 
resistance. At 2.20 Brumby returned to the flag- 
ship with his report and I signalled the squadron: 
"The enemy has surrendered." I directed the ships, 
which had been kept under way in readiness for any 
failure of the compact with the Spaniards, to anchor 
off the water-front of the city, where they com- 
manded it with their guns. Meanwhile, the army 
had entered the city from the side of the Luneta, 
and with some difficulty had also prevented the in- 
surgents from coming in. 

Probably the army officers were so completely 
absorbed in their work that they did not notice that 
the Spanish flag was still flying over the citadel. 
From the ships, however, it was strikingly apparent, 
and I concluded that before the sun went down our 
colors must float over the city. So I sent Brumby 
on shore again with the largest American ensign we 

1 Appendix H. 



28o GEORGE DEWEY 

had on the flag-ship, accompanied only by a couple 
of young signal boys. He had to push his way 
through the crowded streets and enter a citadel filled 
with Spanish soldiers not yet disarmed to accom- 
plish his task. 

At 5.43 I saw the Spanish flag come down and 
then our own float in its place. The guns of all our 
ships thundered out a national salute, while the band 
of one of our regiments, which happily chanced to be 
passing the citadel, played the "Star-Spangled Ban- 
ner," the troops saluted, officers uncovered, and the 
Stars and Stripes, as it was raised for the first time 
over Manila, was greeted with all the honor so punc- 
tiliously given the flag on ceremonious occasions both 
by the army and the navy. The next morning the 
foreign men-of-war were officially notified that the 
city had been occupied and the port was open. Of 
all the foreign commanders, only Captain Chichester 
acknowledged the notification by firing the national 
salute of twenty-one guns with the American ensign 
at the main. 

The details of the surrender^ were determined on 
the 14th by a joint commission, on which my chief 
of staff, Captain Lamberton, was our naval repre- 
sentative. The Spanish troops surrendered the city 
and its defences with all the honors of war, laying 
down their arms and referring the question of their 
future status and repatriation to the government 
at Washington; ofl^icers were allowed to retain their 

1 Appendix H. 



THE TAKING OF MANILA 281 

side-arms, horses, and private property; all public 
property and public funds were turned over to United 
States authority; and Manila, with its inhabitants, 
churches, educational institutions, and private prop- 
erty, was placed under guard of the American army. 

I paid my first visit to the city two days later, and 
found conditions absolutely tranquil and orderly. 
The people had already resumed their peaceful avo- 
cations, and if it had not been for the colors over the 
citadel, the American sentries posted here and there, 
and the presence in the streets of the tall, stalwart, 
good-natured Western volunteers, who made the 
little Filipinos seem diminutive in contrast, one would 
never have imagined that a state of war had lately 
existed or that the sovereignty of centuries had been 
changed. 

News of the signing of the peace protocol, with 
instructions to occupy the city pending the conclu- 
sion of a treaty of peace^ and to suspend hostilities 

^Washington, August 12, 1898. 
Dewey, Hongkong: 

Peace protocol signed by President. Suspend all hostilities and 
blockade. 

Allen. 

Washington, August 12, 1898. 
Dewey, Hongkong: 

The protocol, signed by the President today, provides that the 
United States will occupy and hold the city, bay and harbor of Ma- 
nila pending the conclusion of a treaty of peace which shall determine 
the control, disposition and government of the Philippines. This is 
most important. 

Allen, Acting. 



282 GEORGE DEWEY 

and the blockade, arrived in Manila on the i6th, and 
so did the monitor Monadnock. But now one was as 
useless as the other was unnecessary. On the night 
of August 14, for the first time since April 25, the 
ships were not shrouded in darkness. That after- 
noon I had given the welcome signal, "All restric- 
tions on lights revoked," which meant an immense 
difference in the comfort of the officers and men of 
the squadron. 

Had not the cable been cut there would have 
been no attack on the 13 th, for while our ships — 
counting the twelve hours' difference in time between 
the two hemispheres — were moving into position and 
our troops were holding themselves in readiness for 
a dash upon the Spanish works the protocol was being 
signed at Washington. The absence of immediate 
cable connection had allowed no interruption to the 
fateful progress of events which was to establish our 
authority in the Philippines. On August 21 the 
cable was raised and spliced, and Manila was no 
longer isolated from daily cable communication with 
the rest of the world. 



CHAPTER XIX 
SINCE MANILA 

On August 20, seven days after the taking of 
Manila, I said, in the course of a cable to the depart- 
ment: "I trust that it may not be necessary to order 
me to Paris. Should very much regret to leave here 
while matters are in their present critical condition.'* 

As the one person who had been continuously in 
touch with the Philippine situation from the moment 
that it was precipitated, I considered it my duty to 
remain on the scene as long as there was any oppor- 
tunity for service. Hostilities had ceased with the 
signing of the protocol, but the final terms of a treaty 
of peace remained to be negotiated. Our govern- 
ment had yet to decide whether or not to keep the 
Philippines. 

If we decided to keep them, there was the ques- 
tion of our policy of administration the urgent im- 
portance of which was readily realized by one on 
the spot, while it was difficult to make it realized 
by those in Washington who had had no experience 
of Oriental countries. General Merritt was ordered 
to report to our delegates at the Paris Peace Confer- 
ence, bringing along with his own suggestions any 

that I had to communicate. 

283 



284 GEORGE DEWEY 

Mr. McKinley, after sounding public opinion at 
home, decided not to haul down the flag, and Spain, 
in return for relinquishing sovereignty of the islands, 
was paid the sum of twenty millions. At the time 
the delegates to the Peace Conference scarcely com- 
prehended that a rebellion was included with the 
purchase. We were far from being in possession of 
the property which we had bought. Manila was 
only the capital city of the most important of a 
group of many islands, with many capitals, in all of 
which we must establish authority. With the native 
population welcoming us this would have been only 
a formal task. But outside Manila Aguinaldo was 
continuing to recruit his forces, while his agitators 
spread hostility to us throughout the archipelago. 
Gradually our troops in Manila under command of 
Major-General E. S. Otis, who had succeeded General 
Merritt, were finding themselves Invested by the In- 
surgents, while they rested inactive under strict orders 
not to provoke a conflict. 

The Filipinos, particularly as we could have no 
official relations with the Aguinaldo dictatorship, 
could not believe in our good intentions. Mr. Mc- 
Kinley's proclamation of "benevolent assimilation" 
fell on ears which had long since learned to distrust 
the beneficent and grandiloquent proclamations of 
which the Spanish were masters. It was a time for 
statesmanship if we were to avoid a conflict. As 
Washington seemed to be in the dark about the real 




0^ 
00 



SINCE MANILA 285 

situation on shore, I cabled on January 7, 1899, stat- 
ing that affairs were very disturbed and that a small 
** civilian commission composed of men skilled in di- 
plomacy and statesmanship should be sent to adjust 
differences." 

At the same time I wrote to Senator Proctor, ex- 
pressing my fear that, despite General Otis's forbear- 
ance, we were drifting into a war with the natives. 
"This appears to me an occasion for a triumph 
of statesmanship rather than of arms. Should the 
President decide to do as I suggest, I hope that you 
will be a member of the commission. These people 
are afraid of us, navy and army, but would listen 
to you while they would not to us. They should be 
treated kindly, exactly as you would treat children, 
for they are little else, and should be coerced only 
after gentler means of bringing them to reason have 
failed." 

President McKinley acted promptly on my ad- 
vice, Secretary Long cabling me on January 12: 
"Schurman of Cornell, Worcester of Ann Arbor, 
Denby, late Minister to China, go soon to Manila 
with instructions. They with you and Otis consti- 
tute commission." But in less than a month after 
their appointment the growing anger of the natives 
had broken into flame. Now, after paying twenty 
millions for the islands, we must establish our au- 
thority by force against the very wishes of the people 
whom we sought to benefit. Once the early fighting 



286 GEORGE DEWEY 

with the insurgents was over and their capital at 
Malolos taken, the problem was one of successive 
occupation of towns and provinces against all the 
exasperations of guerilla warfare, in which the navy 
could be of assistance only by protecting landing 
forces and the use of its small gun-boats in shallow 
waters. 

In requesting the appointment of the Schurman 
commission I had taken the first step toward the 
development of a system of civil administration and 
the application of the principles of enlightened rep- 
resentative government in an Oriental country under 
the tutelage of a Western nation. It is for other pens 
to write of the later history of the Philippines, with 
its entail of vigilance, danger, and hardships for our 
troops and of faithful service by our teachers and 
administrators, which have brought to the Filipino 
people the benefits of modern education and progress 
and the opportunity for industrial development. 

On March 2, 1899, Congress had authorized the 
President "to appoint by selection and promotion an 
admiral of the navy, who shall not be placed upon 
the retired list except by his own application; and 
whenever such office shall be vacated by death or 
otherwise the office shall cease to exist." President 
McKinley named me for this unique rank. 

Ten months had now elapsed since I entered 
Manila Bay. I had not once left it, even to take ad- 
vantage of the brief climatic change to Hong Kong 



SINCE MANILA 287 

which I was able to give all my officers. Whatever 
merit there was in untiring devotion to work while 
there was work to do, I might rightfully claim as an 
expression of gratitude for the honor which my coun- 
try had bestowed upon me. But I was weary and 
in poor health, while I could not help being deeply 
affected by the necessity of the loss of life and the 
misery which the pacification of the islands imposed. 

A year after the victory, confident that my pres- 
ence was no longer necessary, the flag-ship weighed 
anchor, leaving the Asiatic Squadron in command of 
Captain A. S. Barker (now rear-admiral, retired), 
who had brought out the battle-ship Oregon. 

President McKinley had left it to me to choose 
my time of departure and my route homeward. 
From all parts of the United States had come re- 
quests for a journey across the country by rail. Our 
inland cities seemed to be vying with one another 
in plans for magnificent receptions. Towns, children, 
and articles of commerce were named after me. I 
was assured that nothing like the enthusiasm for a 
man and a deed had ever been known. But my 
health was unequal to any such triumphal progress. 

As one friend warned me, although I had sur- 
vived the running of the batteries of Forts Jackson 
and St. Philip, the batteries of Port Hudson and 
the battles of Fort Fisher and Manila Bay, I could 
never survive the hospitality from the Pacific to 
the Atlantic coast. Therefore, I decided that I 



288 GEORGE DEWEY 

would land in New York, after cruising leisurely 
homeward by way of the Mediterranean. 

Now, when I entered a foreign harbor, it was with 
my four-starred flag in place of the commodore's 
broad pennant, entitled to a salute of nineteen guns, 
and at any public function the commander of the 
Asiatic Squadron need not take second place. At 
Hong Kong for the first time in a year I enjoyed 
the luxury of sleeping on shore in a hotel free from 
ship's routine. After stops at Colombo and Singa- 
pore, where the British officials showed me every 
honor, and at the same time with characteristic 
consideration appreciated my desire for rest, I pro- 
ceeded through the Suez Canal. 

My fondness for the Mediterranean, which had 
begun with my midshipman cruise, had never waned. 
In its bracing air I found the tonic that I needed. 
Many old associations were renewed, many old mem- 
ories aroused, among them those of Farragut's tour. 
The Civil War had sent its admiral with the message 
of a nation reunited by force; and the Spanish War 
had sent its admiral with the message of a country 
reunited in sentiment and become a world power. 
I could be as proud of the Olympia for the victory 
she had won as I had been as a midshipman of the 
Wabash; and where as captain of the Pensacola I 
knew that we had a navy of antiquated ships, now 
I knew that we had a navy of ships that were fully 
abreast of the progress in naval science. 




THE TEMPORARY TRIUMPHAL ARCH ERECTED IN NEW YORK 

IN ADMIRAL DEWEYS HONOR UPON HIS ARRIVAL 

FROM THE PHILIPPINES 



SINCE MANILA 289 

I was happy in the thought of duty done in a 
way to win praise and at the thought of seeing my 
own country again, even if I were unequal to all the 
banquets that had been offered me. After calls at 
Trieste, Naples, Leghorn, and Villefranche, while I 
forewent all except formal official functions in my 
honor, I finally sailed from Gibraltar for New York 
early in September. 

Even the accounts in the newspapers, the invi- 
tations from cities and corporations and civic and 
patriotic organizations, did not fully prepare me for 
the splendor of the attentions awaiting me. They 
were overwhelming. My career as a hard-working 
naval offfcer scarcely equipped me for a role as the 
central figure of public applause. On the 30th of 
April, 1898, I had been practically unknown to the 
general public. In a day my name was on every 
one's lips. The dash of our squadron into an Ori- 
ental bay seven thousand miles from home had the 
glamour of romance to the national imagination. 

I knew what to do in command of the Asiatic 
Squadron, but being of flesh and blood and not a 
superman, it seemed impossible to live up to all 
that was expected of me as a returning hero. Had 
I died on the way across the Atlantic, there would 
have been an outpouring of subscriptions which 
would have promptly rebuilt the temporary arch in 
my honor in Madison Square in marble. If I were 
to feel later, when the "triumph and shouting" had 



290 GEORGE DEWEY 

abated, that the people had misunderstood me, I 
knew that I had not misunderstood their thought in 
their exuberant pride over the way that the Asiatic 
Squadron had conducted "offensive operations" in 
the PhiHppine Islands. 

Dewey arches, Dewey flags, and "Welcome 
Dewey" in electric lights on the span of the Brook- 
lyn Bridge! The great city of New York made holi- 
day. Its crowds banked the piers, the roofs, and 
Riverside Drive when the Olympia, leading the North 
Atlantic Squadron, which won Santiago, proceeded 
up the North River; and they packed the streets 
for the land parade in token of public emotion, while 
the gold loving-cup which came to me with the free- 
dom of the city expressed the municipality's official 
tribute. In the presence of the spectacle, which was 
without equal, my emotion was indescribable. I 
was no less deeply affected when I stood on the steps 
of the State House at Montpelier with the grounds 
filled with Vermont "home folks," and when, on the 
steps of the east front of the Capitol, I received from 
the hands of the President the sword of honor which 
Congress had voted me. 

On October 5, 1899, my flag was hauled down 
from the Olympia ; but I was to raise it again on 
the Southern drill grounds for the manoeuvres, when 
I had under my direction the most powerful fleet 
which we had ever mobilized up to that time. A 
gratifying feature of the rank of admiral of the navy, 




F'nm a photograph, copyright iSqr,, hy H'iHiam U. Rau 

PRESIDENT Mckinley and admiral dewey reviewing 

THE parade after THE PRESENTATION OF THE 
SWORD GIVEN BY CONGRESS 



SINCE MANILA 291 

which Congress had given me, was that I was to re- 
main in active service for Hfe. While I hved there 
would be work to do. 

Before the Spanish War we had had no central 
advisory authority in determining our naval policy, 
which was therefore subject to the recommenda- 
tions of the different bureaus directly under the 
secretary of the navy, with the result that there 
was not a harmonious purpose. We had been mak- 
ing our appropriations without a proper regard for 
their expenditure to the definite end of developing 
a fighting force as an efficient whole; we had been 
building ships without regard to homogeneity. Now 
it was my pleasure not only to see the recommenda- 
tions which I had made to Secretary Tracy carried 
out by the concentration of our battle-ships in home 
waters, but by the establishment of the General 
Board, which was to prepare war plans, recommend 
the types and armament of ships for the annual 
building programme, and act as a clearing-house for 
all questions of naval policy. I was made President 
of the Board — a position which I still occupy, and 
where I am in daily association with some of the 
finest minds in the service. Naturally, my new as- 
signment required my presence in Washington, the 
city with which I had the most associations, and 
where I preferred to settle. 

For many years during my residence in Washing- 
ton before going to the East Mrs. Mildred (McLean) 



292 GEORGE DEWEY 

Hazen and I had been friends. Upon my return 
from the East she did me the honor to become my 
wife. To her companionship I owe my happiness 
in later years. 

Among all the tokens of the honors that the 
people paid me the simplest one is valued as much 
as the costly loving-cup; and I rejoice in having 
been able to pass the great mile-stone of threescore 
and ten in vigor, still able to appear at my office 
every morning as a naval officer on the active list, 
who can keep in touch with the living science of 
naval warfare in a responsible position, and whose 
experience in two wars and through many stages of 
naval progress I trust is of some value. 

My good friend the late John Hay said that 
one could not boast of his triumphs in love and di- 
plomacy. This is true of the work of the General 
Board. War, which would bring a test of its results, 
will find, unless I am mistaken in my knowledge of 
our officers, men, and ships, the spirit of Jones, 
Perry, and Farragut still dominant, with the cer- 
tainty that our commanders will go into action not 
only with a sufficiency of ammunition but with the 
confidence that they are a part of a well-prepared 
force. 




THE DEWEY MEDAL 

Designed by Daniel C. French 



APPENDICES 



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APPENDIX A 



RESUME OF SHIPS WHICH TOOK ACTIVE PART IN 

ACTION 



TOTALS 


AMERICAN 


SPANISH 


Number of ships 


6 

19,098 

53 

S6 

8 

1,456 


7 
11,689 

31 

44 
13 

1.447 


Displacement 


Guns over 4-mcii 


Guns under 4-mch 


Torpedo tubes 


Officers and men. 





APPENDIX B 

U. S. Naval Force on Asiatic Station, 
Flagship "Olympia," 
Cavite, Philippine Islands, May 4, 1898. 

Sir: 

I have the honor to submit the following report of the oper- 
ations of the squadron under my command: 

The squadron left Mirs Bay on April 27, immediately on 
the arrival of Mr. O. F. Williams, United States consul at Ma- 
nila, who brought important information and who accompanies 
the squadron. 

Arrived off Bolinao on the morning of April 30 and, finding 
no vessels there, proceeded down the coast and arrived off the 
entrance to Manila Bay on the same afternoon. 

The Boston and Concord were sent to reconnoiter Port Subic, 
I having been informed that the enemy intended to take position 
there. A thorough search of the port was made by the Boston 
and Concord, but the Spanish fleet was not found, although 
from a letter afterwards found in the arsenal (inclosed with 
translation), it appears that it had been their intention to go 
there. 

Entered the Boca Grande, or south channel, at 11.30 p. m., 
steaming in column at distance at 8 knots. After half the 
squadron had passed, a battery on the south side of the chan- 
nel opened fire, none of the shots taking effect. The Boston 
and McCulloch returned the fire. 

The squadron proceeded across the bay at slow speed, and 
arrived off Manila at daybreak, and was fired upon at 5.15 
a. m. by three batteries at Manila and two at Cavite and by 
the Spanish fleet anchored in an approximately east and west 
line across the mouth of Bakor Bay, with their left in shoal 
water in Canacao Bay. 

297 



298 APPENDIX B 

The squadron then proceeded to the attack, the flagship 
Olympia, under my personal direction, leading, followed at dis- 
tance by the Baltimore, Raleigh, Petrel, Concord, and Boston, in 
the order named, which formation was maintained throughout 
the action. The squadron opened fire at 5.41 a. m. While ad- 
vancing to the attack, two mines were exploded ahead of the 
flagship, too far to be eff'ective. 

The squadron maintained a continuous and precise fire at 
ranges varying from 5,000 to 2,000 yards, countermarching in 
a line approximately parallel to that of the Spanish fleet. The 
enemy's fire was vigorous, but generally ineffective. 

Early in the engagement two launches put out toward the 
Olympia with the apparent intention of using torpedoes. One 
was sunk and the other disabled by our fire and beached before 
an opportunity occurred to fire torpedoes. At 7 a. m. the 
Spanish flagship Reina Cristina made a desperate attempt to 
leave the line and come out to engage at short range, but was 
received with such galling fire, the entire battery of the Olym- 
pia being concentrated upon her, that she was barely able to 
return to the shelter of the point. The fires started in her by 
our shell at this time were not extinguished until she sank. 

At 7.35 A. M., it having been erroneously reported to me 
that only 15 rounds per gun remained for the 5-inch rapid- 
fire battery, I ceased firing and withdrew the squadron for 
consultation and a redistribution of ammunition, if necessary. 

The three batteries at Manila had kept up a continuous 
fire from the beginning of the engagement, which fire was not 
returned by this squadron. The first of these batteries was 
situated on the south mole head at the entrance to the Pasig 
River, the second on the south bastion of the walled city of 
Manila, and the third at Malate, about one-half mile farther 
south. At this point I sent a message to the Governor-General 
to the effect that if the batteries did not cease firing the city 
would be shelled. This had the effect of silencing them. 

At 1 1. 16 A. M., finding that the report of scarcity of ammu- 
nition was incorrect, I returned with the squadron to the at- 
tack. By this time the flagship and almost the entire Spanish 
fleet were in flames, and at 12.30 p. m. the squadron ceased 



APPENDIX B 299 

firing, the batteries being silenced and the ships sunk, burnt, 
and deserted. 

At 12.40 P. M. the squadron returned and anchored off 
Manila, the Petrel being left behind to complete the destruc- 
tion of the smaller gunboats, which were behind the point of 
Cavite. This duty was performed by Commander E. P. Wood 
in the most expeditious and complete manner possible. 

The Spanish fleet lost the following vessels: 

Sunk — Reina Cristina, Castilla, Don Antonio de Ulloa. 

Burnt — Don Juan de Austria, Isla de Luzon, Isla de Cuba, 
General Lezo, Marques del Duero, El Correo, Felasco, and Isla 
de Mindanao (transport). 

Captured — Rdpido and Heracles (tugs) and several small 
launches. 

I am unable to obtain complete accounts of the enemy's 
killed and wounded, but believe their loss to be very heavy. 
The Reina Cristina alone had 150 killed, including the cap- 
tain, and 90 wounded. 

I am happy to report that the damage done to the squad- 
ron under my command was inconsiderable. There were none 
killed, and only seven men in the squadron very slightly 
wounded. As will be seen by the reports of the commanding 
ofl&cers which are herewith inclosed, several of the vessels were 
struck and even penetrated, but the damage was of the slight- 
est, and the squadron is in as good condition now as before the 
battle. 

I beg to state to the Department that I doubt if any com- 
mander-in-chief, under similar circumstances, was ever served 
by more loyal, efficient, and gallant captains than those of the 
squadron now under my command. Captain Frank Wildes, 
commanding the Boston, volunteered to remain in command of 
his vessel, although his relief arrived before leaving Hongkong. 
Assistant Surgeon C. P. Kindleberger, of the Olympia, and 
Gunner J. C. Evans, of the Boston, also volunteered to remain 
after orders detaching them had arrived. 

The conduct of my personal staff was excellent. Com- 
mander B. P. Lamberton, chief of staff, was a volunteer for 
that position and gave me most efficient aid. Lieutenant T. 



300 APPENDIX B 

M. Brumby, flag lieutenant, and Ensign W. P. Scott, aid, 
performed their duties as signal officers in a highly creditable 
manner. The Olympia being short of officers for the battery. 
Ensign H. H. Caldwell, flag secretary, volunteered for and was 
assigned to a subdivision of the 5-inch battery. Mr. J. L. 
Stickney, formerly an officer in the United States Navy, and 
now correspondent for the New York Herald, volunteered for 
duty as my aid, and rendered valuable service. 

While leaving to the commanding officers to comment on 
the conduct of the officers and men under their commands, I 
desire especially to mention the coolness of Lieutenant C. G. 
Calkins, the navigator of the Olympia, who came under my 
personal observation, being on the bridge with me throughout 
the entire action, and giving the ranges to the guns with an 
accuracy that was proven by the excellence of the firing. 

On May 2, the day following the engagement, the squadron 
again went to Cavite, where it remains. A landing party was 
sent to destroy the guns and magazines of the batteries there. 
The first battery, near the end of Sangley Point, was com- 
posed of two modern Trubia B. L. rifles of 15 centimeters caliber. 
The second was one mile farther down the beach, and consisted 
of a modern Canet 12-centimeter B. L. rifle behind improvised 
earthworks. 

On the 3d the military forces evacuated the Cavite arsenal, 
which was taken possession of by a landing party. On the 
same day the Raleigh and Baltimore secured the surrender of 
the batteries on Corregidor Island, paroling the garrison and 
destroying the guns. 

On the morning of May 4 the transport Manila, which 
had been aground in Bakor Bay, was towed off" and made a 
prize. 

Very respectfully, your obedient servant, 
George Dewey, 

Commodore, U. S. Navy, 
Commanding U. S. Naval Force on Asiatic Station. 
The Secretary of the Navy, 

Washington, D. C. 



APPENDIX C 

Official Report of Admiral Montojo 
departure for subic 

On the 25th of April, at 11 p. m., I left the bay of Manila 
for Subic with a squadron composed of the cruisers Reina Cris- 
tina, Don Juan de Austria, Isla de Cuba, Isla de Luzon, de- 
spatch boat Marques del Duero, and the wooden cruiser Castilla. 
This last could merely be considered as a floating battery, in- 
capable of maneuvering, on account of the bad condition of her 
hull. The following morning, being at Subic, I had a confer- 
ence with Captain Del Rio, who, though he did not relieve my 
anxiety respecting the completion of the defensive works, as- 
sured me that they would soon be finished. 

In the meanwhile the cruiser Castilla, even on this short 
cruise, was making much water through the bearings of the pro- 
peller and the opening astern. They worked day and night to 
stop these leaks with cement, finally making the vessel nearly 
water-tight, but absolutely impossible to use her engines. 

On the morning of the 27th I sailed with the vessels to 
cover the entrance to the port of Subic. The Castilla was 
taken to the northeast point of Isla Grande to defend the 
western entrance, since the eastern entrance had already been 
closed with the hulls of the San Quintin and two old merchant 
vessels which were sunk there. 

With much disgust, I found that the guns which should 
have been mounted on that island were delayed a month and 
a half. This surprised me, as the shore batteries that the navy 
had installed (with very little difficulty) at the entrance of the 
bay of Manila, under the intelligent direction of Colonel of 
Naval Artillery, Senor Garces, and Lieutenant Venavente, 

301 



302 APPENDIX C 

were ready to fight twenty-four days after the commencement 
of the work. 

I was also no less disgusted that they confided in the effi- 
cacy of the few torpedoes which they had found feasible to put 
there. 

The entrance was not defended by torpedoes nor by the 
batteries of the island, so that the squadron would have had 
to bear the attack of the Americans with its own resources, 
in 40 meters of water and with little security. Our vessels 
could not only be destroyed, but they could not save their 
crews. I still held a hope that the Americans would not go 
to Subic, and give us time for more preparations, but the fol- 
lowing day I received from the Spanish consul at Hong Kong 
a telegram which said: "Enemy's squadron sailed at 2 p. m. 
from the bay of Mira, and according to reliable accounts they 
sailed for Subic to destroy our squadron, and then will go to 
Manila." 

This telegram demonstrated that the enemy knew where 
they could find my squadron and that the port of Subic had no 
defenses. 

The same day, the 28th of April, I convened a council of 
the captains, and all, with the exception of Del Rio, chief of 
the new arsenal, thought that the situation was insupportable, 
and that we should go to the bay of Manila in order to accept 
there the battle under less unfavorable conditions. 

THE RETURN TO MANILA 

I refused to have our ships near the city of Manila, because, 
far from defending it, this would provoke the enemy to bombard 
the plaza, which doubtless would have been demolished on ac- 
count of its few defenses. It was unanimously decided that 
we should take position in the bay of Caiiacao, in the least 
water possible, in order to combine our fire with that of the 
batteries of Point Sangley and UUoa. 

I immediately ordered Del Rio to concentrate his forces in 
the most strategic point of the arsenal, taking every disposition 
to burn the coal and stores before allowing them to fall into 
the power of the enemy. I sent the Don Juan de Austria to 



APPENDIX C 303 

Manila to get a large number of lighters filled with sand to 
defend the water line of the Castilla (which could not move) 
against the enemy's shells and torpedoes. At 10 a. m. on the 
29th I left Subic with the vessels of my squadron, towing the 
Castilla by the transport Manila. 

In the afternoon of the same day we anchored in the Gulf 
of Canacao in 8 meters of water. On the following morning 
we anchored in line of battle, the Cristina, Castilla, Don Juan 
de Austria, Don Antonio de Ulloa, Luzon, Cuba, and Marques 
del Duero, while the transport Manila was sent to the Roads of 
Bacoor, where the Velasco and Lezo were undergoing repairs. 

At 7 p. M. I received a telegram from Subic announcing 
that the enemy's squadron had entered the port at 3, reconnoi- 
tering, doubtless seeking our ships, and from there they sailed 
with course for Manila. 

The mail steamer Isla Mindanao arrived in the bay. I ad- 
vised her captain to save his vessel by going to Singapore, as 
the enemy could not get into the entrance probably before 
midnight. As he was not authorized from the trans-Atlantic 
he did not do so, and then I told him that he could anchor in 
shallow water as near as possible to Bacoor. 

At midnight gun fire was heard off Corregidor, and at 2 on 
the morning of the ist of May I received telegraphic advices 
that the American vessels were throwing their search lights at 
the batteries of the entrance, with which they had exchanged 
several shots. I notified the commanding general of the arse- 
nal, Seiior Sostoa, and the general-governor of the plaza. Cap- 
tain Seiior Garcia Pana, that they should prepare themselves. 
I directed all the artillery to be loaded, and all the sailors and 
soldiers to go to their stations for battle, soon to receive the 
enemy. 

This is all that occurred since I sailed to Subic until the 
entrance of the American squadron into the bay of Manila. 

THE ARRIVAL OF THE ENEMY 

The squadron being disposed for action, fires spread, and 
everything in proper place, we waited for the enemy's arrival. 
All the vessels, having been painted dark gray color, had taken 



304 APPENDIX C 

down their masts and yards and boats to avoid the effects of 
projectiles and the splinters, had their anchors buoyed and 
cables ready to slip instantly. 

At 4 A. M. I made signal to prepare for action, and at 4.45 
the Austria signaled the enemy's squadron, a few minutes after 
which they were recognized, with some confusion, in a column 
parallel with ours, at about 6,000 meters distant; the flagship 
Olympia ahead, followed by the Baltimore, Raleigh, Boston, 
Concord, Helena, Petrel, and McCulloch, and the two transports 
Zafiro and Nanshan. 

The force of these vessels, excepting transports that were 
noncombatant, amounted to 21,410 tons, 49,290 horsepower, 
163 guns (many of which were rapid fire), 1,750 men in their 
crews, and of an average velocity of about 17 miles. The power 
of our only five effective ships for battle was represented by 
10,111 tons, 11,200 horsepower, 76 guns (very short of rapid 
fire), 1,875 crew, and a maximum speed of 12 miles. 

THE FIRE FROM SHORE 

At 5 the batteries on Point Sangley opened fire. The two 
first shots fell short and to the left of the leading vessel. These 
shots were not answered by the enemy, whose principal object 
was the squadron. 

This battery had only two Ordoiiez guns of 15 centimeters 
mounted, and but one of these could fire in the direction of the 
opposing fleet. 

In a few minutes one of the batteries of Manila opened fire, 
and at 5.15 I made signal that our squadron open fire. The 
enemy answered immediately. The battle became general. 
We slipped the springs and the cables and started ahead with 
the engines, so as not to be involved by the enemy. 

THE BATTLE 

The Americans fired most rapidly. There came upon us 
numberless projectiles, as the three cruisers at the head of the 
Hne devoted themselves almost entirely to fight the Cristina, 
my flagship. A short time after the action commenced one 
shell exploded in the forecastle and put out of action all those 



APPENDIX C 305 

who served the four rapid-fire cannon, making spHnters of the 
forward mast, which wounded the helmsman on the bridge, 
when Lieut. Jose Nufiez took the wheel with a coolness worthy 
of the greatest commendation, steering until the end of the fight. 
In the meanwhile another shell exploded in the orlop, setting 
fire to the crews' bags, which they were fortunately able to 
control. 

The enemy shortened the distance between us, and, recti- 
fying his aim, covered us with a rain of rapid-fire projectiles. 
At 7.30 one shell destroyed completely the steering gear. I 
ordered to steer by hand while the rudder was out of action. 
In the meanwhile another shell exploded on the poop and put 
out of action nine men. Another destroyed the mizzen mast- 
head, bringing down the flag and my ensign, which were re- 
placed immediately. A fresh shell exploded in the officers' 
cabin, covering the hospital with blood, destroying the wounded 
who were being treated there. Another exploded in the ammu- 
nition room astern, filling the quarters with smoke and pre- 
venting the working of the hand steering gear. As it was im- 
possible to control the fire, I had to flood the magazine when 
the cartridges were beginning to explode. 

Amidships several shells of smaller caliber went through 
the smokestack and one of the large ones penetrated the fire 
room, putting out of action one master gunner and 12 men 
serving the guns. Another rendered useless the starboard bow 
gun; while the fire astern increased, fire was started forward 
by another shell, which went through the hull and exploded on 
the deck. 

The broadside guns, being undamaged, continued firing until 
there were only one gunner and one seaman remaining unhurt 
for firing them, as the guns' crews had been frequently called 
upon to substitute those charged with steering, all of whom 
were out of action. 

THE DESTRUCTION OF OUR SHIPS 

The ship being out of control, the hull, smoke pipe, and 
mast riddled with shot or confused with the cries of the wounded ; 
half of her crew out of action, among whom were seven officers, 



3o6 APPENDIX C 

I gave the order to sink and abandon the ship before the maga- 
zines should explode, making signal at the same time to the 
Cuba and Luzon to assist in saving the rest of the crew, which 
they did, aided by others from the Duero and the arsenal. 

I abandoned the Cristina, directing beforehand to secure 
her flag, and accompanied by my staff, and with great sorrow, 
I hoisted my flag on the cruiser Isla de Cuba. 

After having saved many men from the unfortunate vessel, 
one shell destroyed her heroic commander, Don Luis Cadarso, 
who was directing the rescue. 

The Ulloa, which also defended herself firmly, using the 
only two guns which were available, was sunk by a shell which 
entered the water line, putting out of action her commander 
and half of her remaining crew, those which were only remain- 
ing for the service of the two guns stated. 

The Castilla, which fought heroically, remained with her 
artillery useless, except one stern gun, with which they fought 
spiritedly, was riddled with shot and set on fire by the enemy's 
shells, then sunk, and was abandoned by her crew in good order, 
which was directed by her commander, Don Alonzo Algado. 
The casualties on this ship were 23 killed and 80 wounded. 

The Austria, very much damaged and on fire, went to the 
aid of the Castilla. The Luzon had three guns dismounted, 
and was slightly damaged in the hull. The Duero remained 
with one of her engines useless, the bow gun of 12 centimeters 
and one of the redoubts. 

At 8 o'clock in the morning, the enemy's squadron having 
suspended its fire, I ordered the ships that remained to us to 
take positions in the bottom of the Roads at Bacoor, and there 
to resist to the last moment, and that they should be sunk 
before they surrendered. 

THE SINKING 

At 10.30 the enemy returned, forming a circle to destroy 
the arsenal and the ships which remained to me, opening upon 
them a horrible fire, which we answered as far as we could with 
the few cannon which we still had mounted. 

There remained the last recourse to sink our vessels, and 



APPENDIX C 307 

we accomplished this operation, taking care to save the flag, 
the distinguishing pennant, the money in the safe, the portable 
arms, the breech plugs of the guns, and the signal codes. 

After which I went with my staff to the Convent of Santo 
Domingo de Cavite, to be cured of a wound received in the left 
leg, and to telegraph a brief report of the action, with prelim- 
inaries and results. 

THE JUDGMENT OF THE ADMIRAL 

It remains only to say that all the chiefs, officers, engineers, 
quartermasters, gunners, sailors, and soldiers rivalled one an- 
other in sustaining with honor the good name of the navy on 
this sad day. 

The inefficiency of the vessels which composed my little 
squadron, the lack of all classes of the personnel, especially 
master gunners and seamen gunners; the inaptitude of some 
of the provisional machinists, the scarcity of rapid-fire cannon, 
the strong crews of the enemy, and the unprotected character 
of the greater part of our vessels, all contributed to make more 
decided the sacrifice which we made for our country and to 
prevent the possibility of the horrors of the bombardment of 
the city of Manila, with the conviction that with the scarcity 
of our force against the superior enemy we were going to cer- 
tain death and could expect a loss of all our ships. 

Our casualties, including those of the arsenal, amounted 
to 381 men killed and wounded. 



APPENDIX D 

Office of the Commander-in-Chief of the Navy in the 

Philippines. 

Personal. Manila, 26 September , 1898. 

To His Excellency, 

Rear-Admiral Dewey. 
My dear Sir: 

With all my consideration and special respect, I present 
my earnest thanks for the amiable reply which you took occa- 
sion to send to my letter in your communication of the 24th 
ultimo, regretting also that the circumstances in which we find 
ourselves do not permit me to convey my feelings by conver- 
sation. 

Being called to Madrid to make answer to the charges which 
may be made against me, principally for going to Subic and for 
the loss of my squadron at Cavite, I have to defend myself 
from the calumny which may be raised against me; for this 
purpose it would be of the greatest utility and much force if I 
were able to offer the highly valuable testimony of the author- 
ized opinion of yourself, the distinguished Commander-in-Chief 
of the squadron which I had the honor of engaging. 

For this purpose I am compelled to put on record: 

1. That the port of Subic was without shore fortifications 
or submarine torpedoes at its entrance. 

2. That the destruction of my squadron, given the superi- 
ority of yours, would have been far more complete at Subic than 
at Cavite because the depth of water being much greater in the 
former port, ships and men would have sunk, causing great loss 
of life. 

3. That you did not find us unready at the entrance of 
Manila Bay and still less so at Cavite, and if fortune did not 

30S 



APPENDIX D 309 

favor the Spaniards it was not for lack of valor but principally 
because we had poor ships. 

I know that my temerity in making this request of you is 
very great; but invoking the fact that we belong to the same 
profession and remembering that you have more than once 
had the kindness to praise my conduct, I force myself to believe 
that this will be well received. 

The affair has an immense importance for me since it is 
closely related to my honor and personal reputation. 

I have another request to make of you, and that is in favor 
of Captain Del Rio, old and sick, late naval commandant at 
Subic, and the officers, sailors and soldiers who are with him 
in the power of the insurgents, and very badly treated. If you 
would consent to arrange for their transfer to Manila, continu- 
ing as prisoners, they would be satisfied. 

For my part, after begging your pardon a thousand times 
for the liberty which I am taking, I hope that you will kindly 
grant my request, for which your faithful servant will be eter- 
nally grateful. 

Patricio Montojo. 

Rear- Admiral Montojo, 

Manila. 
My dear Sir: 

It gives me pleasure, replying to your letter of the 26th 
mstant, to record my testimony in favor of a gallant foe. 

1. In regard to the port of Subic, it was carefully reconnoi- 
tred on the 30th of April by three of my ships, two of which 
made the complete circuit of the bay without finding anything 
to oppose them. 

2. Your statement as to the probability of greater loss of 
life in a deep bay like that of Subic than in shoal water as at 
Cavite, appears to me to be incontrovertible. 

3. Although without accurate knowledge as to the condi- 
tion of your ships, I have no hesitation in saying to you what 
I have already had the honor to report to my government, that 
your defense at Cavite was gallant in the extreme. The fight- 
ing of your flagship, which was singled out for attack, was es- 



3IO APPENDIX D 

pecially worthy of a place in the traditions of valor of your 
nation. 

In conclusion, I beg to assure you that I very much regret 
that calumnies have been cast at you, and am confident that 
your honor cannot be dimmed by them. 

With assurances of my highest consideration, 

Very sincerely, 

George Dewey, 
Rear- Admiral, U. S. N., Comdg. Asiatic Station. 



APPENDIX E 

Washington, May 26, 1898. 
Dewey (care American Consul) Hongkong: 

You must exercise discretion most fully in all matters, and 
be governed according to circumstance which you know and 
we cannot know. You have our confidence entirely. It is de- 
sirable, as far as possible, and consistent for your success and 
safety, not to have political alliances with the insurgents or 
any faction in the islands that would incur liability to maintain 
their cause in the future. Long. 

Washington, June 14, 1898. 
Dewey (care American Consul) Hongkong: 

Report fully any conferences, relations, or cooperations, 
military or otherwise, which you have had with Aguinaldo, and 
keep informed the Department in that respect. Long. 

Hongkong, June 6, 1898 (Cavite, June 3). 
Secretary of Navy, Washington: 

Receipt of telegram of May 26 is acknowledged, and I thank 
the Department for the expression of confidence. Have acted 
according to the spirit of Department's instructions therein 
from the beginning, and I have entered into no alliance with 
the insurgents or with any faction. This squadron can reduce 
the defenses of Manila at any moment, but it is considered 
useless until the arrival of sufficient United States forces to 
retain possession. Dewey. 

Hongkong, June 27, 1898. 
Secretary of Navy, Washington: 

Receipt of telegram of June 14 is acknowledged. Aguinaldo, 
insurgent leader, with thirteen of his staff, arrived May 19, by 

3" 



312 APPENDIX E 

permission, on Nanshan. Established self Cavite, outside ar- 
senal, under the protection of our guns, and organized his army. 
I have had several conferences with him, generally of a personal 
nature. Consistently I have refrained from assisting him in 
any way with the force under my command, and on several 
occasions I have declined requests that I should do so, telling 
him the squadron could not act until the arrival of the United 
States troops. At the same time I have given him to under- 
stand that I consider insurgents as friends, being opposed to a 
common enemy. He has gone to attend a meeting of insur- 
gent leaders for the purpose of forming a civil government. 
Aguinaldo has acted independently of the squadron, but has 
kept me advised of his progress, which has been wonderful. I 
have allowed to pass by water recruits, arms and ammuni- 
tion, and to take such Spanish arms and ammunition from the 
arsenal as he needed. Have advised frequently to conduct the 
war humanely, which he has done invariably. My relations 
with him are cordial, but I am not in his confidence. The 
United States has not been bound in any way to assist insur- 
gents by any act or promises, and he is not, to my knowledge, 
committed to assist us. I believe he expects to capture Ma- 
nila without my assistance, but doubt ability, they not yet hav- 
ing many guns. In my opinion, these people are far superior 
in their intelligence and more capable of self-government than 
the natives of Cuba, and I am familiar with both races. 

Dewey. 

Filipinos: 

The great North American nation, the cradle of genuine 
liberty, and therefore the friend of our people, oppressed and 
enslaved by the tyranny and despotism of its rulers, has come 
to us manifesting a protection as decisive as it is undoubtedly 
disinterested toward our inhabitants, considering us as suffi- 
ciently civilized and capable of governing for ourselves our un- 
fortunate country. In order to maintain this high estimate 
granted us by the generous North American nation we should 
abominate all those deeds which tend to lower this opinion, 
which are pillage, theft, and all sorts of crimes leading to persons 



APPENDIX E 313 

or property, with the purpose of avoiding international con- 
flicts during the period of our campaign. 

I decree as follows: 

Article I. The lives and property of all foreigners, Chinese 
being included in this denomination, shall be respected, as well 
as that of all Spaniards who neither directly nor indirectly con- 
tributed to carry on war against us. 

Article II. Enemies who lay down their arms must also be 
respected in like manner. 

Article III. All hospitals and ambulances must likewise 
be respected, as well as all persons and goods found therein, 
including the staff on duty, unless they manifest hostility. 

Article IV. Those who disobey what is prescribed in these 
preceding articles shall be tried by summary process, and put 
to death if the said disobedience has resulted in murder, rob- 
bery, or rape. 

Given in Cavite, the 24th of May, 1898. 

Emilio Aguinaldo. 



APPENDIX F 

The following extracts from the writings of well-known au- 
thorities on the subject are given in Stockton's Manual of 
Snow's International Law: 

It may be a serious disadvantage, if not positive injury, 
to a blockading belligerent to have a blockaded port subject 
to frequent or sympathetic visits of a neutral vessel of war. 
The tendencies favor a limitation of such visits which usage 
permits as a matter of courtesy alone. The vessel of war de- 
siring to enter the blockaded port should, in seeking permis- 
sion, if necessary, establish her identity to the blockading ves- 
sels. Quotations from authorities upon this subject follow here: 

Perels, a German authority, makes the following statement 
upon the subject, which is the more interesting from his posi- 
tion as lecturer at the Imperial Naval Academy at Kiel. In his 
work, translated into French by Arendt, he says, on page 203 : 

"La fermeture de la place bloquee doit etre respectee par 
les navires de guerre et de commerce neutres; il n'est pas rare, 
cependant, que les navires de guerre neutres soient exceptes 
de la prohibition d'entrer. . . . Le Gouvernement fran^ais 
avait adopte une regie contraire en 1838, lorsqu'il fit mettre, 
par sa flotte, les cotes de la republique Argentine en etat de 
blocus. Le departement des affaires etrangeres rendit alors le 
decret suivant: 'Les batiments de guerre neutres se presentant 
devant un port bloque doivent aussi etre invites a s'eloigner; 
s'ils persistent, le commandant du blocus a le droit de s'opposer 
a leur entree par la force, et la responsabilite de tout ce qui peut 
s'en suivre pesera sur les violateurs du blocus.'" 

Captain Testa, of the Portuguese navy, professor at the 
naval school in Lisbon, in the French translation of his work, 
by M. Boutiron, states on page 225 that — 

314 



APPENDIX F 315 

"D'accord avec les principes admis, le blocus etablit le droit 
de prohiber I'entree des points bloques tant pour les navires de 
guerre que pour les navires de commerce. Cependant, les 
puissances qui etablissent le blocus autorisent souvent la libra 
entree et la sortie des navires de guerre neutres par la consi- 
deration qu'il n'est pas presumable d'apres leur caractere, qu'ils 
aillent aider le belligerent bloque; et qu'en outre, la fin prin- 
cipal du blocus etant d'interdire le commerce par mer, I'entree 
ou la sortie des navires de guerre impartiaux et non com- 
mer9ants ne porte pas prejudice a ce but." 

Calvo says, in section 2561, page 97, of volume 4, that — 

**En droit I'acces et la sortie d'un port bloque sont interdits 

aussi bien aux batiments de guerre qu'aux navires de commerce. 

"'Un batiment de guerre,' dit Wheaton, 'n'a pas le droit 

d'entrer dans un port bloque ni d'en sortir, a moins qu'il n'y 

fut deja a I'epoque oii a commence le blocus.' . . ." 

Mr. J. H. Ferguson, formerly of the Netherlands royal navy, 
and at one time minister of the Netherlands in China, says in 
his manual, volume 2, page 486, article 276: 

"During the continuance of the state of blockade no vessels 
are allowed to enter or leave the blockaded place without special 
license or consent of the blockading authority. Public vessels 
or vessels of war of neutral powers are all equally bound by the 
same obligation to respect the blockade. When the public ves- 
sel of a neutral state wishes to have communication with a 
blockaded place, the neutral commanding officer is obliged to 
observe strict neutrality and to comply with the conditions 
under which such permission has been granted to cross the lines 
of the blockading belligerent. . . ." 

Walker, on page 522, says: 

"The stringency of a blockade may indeed be relaxed in 
two peculiar cases. After the expiration of the period ap- 
pointed for the withdrawal of ordinary neutral private vessels, 
and at any time during the continuance of the investment men- 
of-war flying the flags of neutral powers are commonly by cour- 



3i6 APPENDIX F 

tesy permitted to communicate with the blockaded ports, and 
to maintain the pubHc correspondence of their own or other 
neutral governments with their respective consular or diplo- 
matic agents. It behooves such licensed carriers, however, to 
see to it that their privilege does not become a cloak for ille- 
gitimate dealings. . . ." 



APPENDIX G 

Headquarters United States Land and Naval Forces, 
Manila Bay, Philippine Islands, 

August yth, 1898. 
To THE General in Chief, 

Commanding Spanish Forces in Manila. 
Sir: 

We have the honor to notify your Excellency that operations 
of the land and naval forces of the United States against the 
defenses of Manila may begin at any time after the expiration 
of forty-eight hours from the hour of receipt by you of this com- 
munication, or sooner if made necessary by an attack on your 
part. 

This notice is given m order to afford you an opportunity 
to remove all non-combatants from the city. 
Very respectfully, 

Wesley Merritt, 
Major-General, U. S. Jrmy, 
Commanding Land Forces of the United States. 
George Dewey, 
Rear-Admiral, U. S. Navy, 
Commanding United States Naval Force on Asiatic Station. 

Manila, August 7, 1898. 
To the Major-General of the Army, 
and the Rear-Admiral of the Navy, 

Commanding respectively the Military and 
Naval Forces of the United States. 
Gentlemen : 

I have the honor to inform Your Excellencies that at 
half-past twelve today I received the notice with which you 

317 



3i8 APPENDIX G 

favor me, that after forty-eight hours have elapsed you 
may begin operations against this fortified city, or at an 
earHer hour if the forces under your command are attacked by 
mine. 

As your notice is sent for the purpose of providing for the 
safety of non-combatants, I give thanks to Your Excellencies 
for the humane sentiments you have shown, and state that, find- 
ing myself surrounded by insurrectionary forces, I am with- 
out places of refuge for the increased numbers of wounded, 
sick, women and children, who are now lodged within the 
walls. 

Very respectfully, and kissing the hands of your Excellen- 
cies, 

Fermin Jaudenes, 
Governor-General and Captain-General 
of the Philippines. 



Headquarters United States Land and Naval Forces 
Manila Bay, Philippine Islands 

Jngust 9, 1898. 
Sir : 

The inevitable suffering in store for the wounded, sick, 
women and children, in the event that it becomes our duty to 
reduce the defenses of the walled town in which they are gath- 
ered, will, we feel assured, appeal successfully to the sympathies 
of a general capable of making the determined and prolonged 
resistance which Your Excellency has exhibited after the loss of 
your naval forces, and without hope of succor. 

We therefore submit, without prejudice to the high senti- 
ments of honor and duty which Your Excellency entertains, 
that surrounded on every side as you are by a constantly in- 
creasing force, with a powerful fleet in your front, and deprived 
of all prospect of reinforcement and assistance, a most useless 
sacrifice of life would result in the event of an attack, and there- 
fore every consideration of humanity makes it imperative that 
you should not subject your city to the horrors of a bombard- 



APPENDIX G 319 

ment. Accordingly we demand the surrender of the city of 
Manila, and the Spanish forces under your command. 

Very respectfully, 

Wesley Merritt, 
Major-General, U. S. A., 
Commanding Land Forces of the United States. 
George Dewey, 
Rear-Admiral, U. S. N., 
Comma7iding U. S. Naval Force on Asiatic Station. 
The Governor-General and Captain-General 
OF THE Philippines. 

The Governor-General and Captain-General of the Phil- 
ippines TO the Major-Gen eral of the Army, and the 
Rear-Admiral of the Navy, 

Commanding respectively the Alilitary and Naval 
Force of the United States. 
Gentlemen : 

Having received an intimation from Your Excellencies that, 
in obedience to sentiments of humanity to which you appeal 
and which I share, I should surrender this city and the forces 
under my orders, I have assembled the Council of Defense which 
declares that your request cannot be granted, but taking ac- 
count of the most exceptional circumstances existing in this 
city which Your Excellencies recite and which I unfortunately 
have to admit, I would consult my Government if Your Ex- 
cellencies will grant the time strictly necessary for this com- 
munication by way of Hong Kong. 

Very respectfully, Fermin Jaudenes, 
Governor-General and Captain-General of the Philippines. 

Headquarters United States Land and Naval Forces, 

Manila Bay, August loth, 1898. 
To THE Governor-General and Captain-General 

OF the Philippines Islands. 
Sir : 

We have the honor to acknowledge the communication of 
Your Excellency of the 8th instant, in which you suggest your 



320 APPENDIX G 

desire to consult your government in regard to the exceptional 
circumstances in your city, provided the time to do so can be 
granted by us. 

In reply we respectfully inform Your Excellency that we 
decline to grant the time requested. 

Very respectfully, 

Wesley Merritt, 
Major-General, U. S. Army, 
Commanding United States Land Forces. 
George Dewey, 
Rear-Admiral U. S. Navy, 
Commanding United States Naval Forces^ Asiatic Station. 



APPENDIX H 

Preliminary Agreement entered into this day in regard to 
capitulation of the Spanish Army in the Philippines, de- 
tails to be arranged by a joint commission. 

The capitulation will be under the following terms: 

1. The military forces of the United States shall occupy the 
city and the defenses of Manila until in the treaty of peace be- 
tween the two belligerent powers may be agreed the final fate 
of the city. 

2. It being impossible for the Spanish forces of the garrison 
to evacuate the place either by sea, on account of the lack of 
steamers, or by land on account of the insurgents, it is hereby 
agreed that all the fighting forces capitulate with the honors 
of war, the officers keeping their swords, guns, horses and furni- 
ture, and the troops will deposit theirs in the place agreed. 

3. All persons included in the capitulation will be at liberty, 
being allowed to live in their abodes, which shall be respected. 

4. The Spanish troops will remain in their barracks at the 
orders of their chiefs. 

5. The authorities and the forces of North America will 
carefully respect the persons, their dwellings and property, of 
the inhabitants of Manila and its suburbs. 

6. The banks, credit societies, industrial establishments, 
and those for educational purposes or any other, the object 
of which is humanity and civilization, shall continue open 
according to their regulations, unless modified by the author- 
ities of the United States as circumstances may require. 

7. The expenses of living of the military and navy men will 
be paid with the funds of the Spanish treasury if there be enough, 
and in the contrary they will be aided with the amount that 
corresponds to the prisoners of war, according to their rank. 

321 



322 APPENDIX H 

8. The repatriation of the officers and soldiers and their 
families will be at the cost of the United States and also of the 
native officers which may desire to return to Spain. 

9. The native troops will be dismissed from the service. 

10. The United States authorities, to the best of their abil- 
ity, guarantee and will insure the safety of the lives and prop- 
erties of the inhabitants of Manila. 

The 7th Article shall be construed to cover rations and 
necessary supplies. The United States to determine what is 
necessary. 

Complete returns of men shall be rendered to the United 
States authorities by organizations, and also full lists of public 
property and stores in their possession. 

The question of returning troops to Spain and the expenses 
thereof to be determined by the United States Government at 
Washington. 

Arms will be returned to the men at the discretion of the 
U. S. authorities, and officers shall retain their side arms. 

Fermin Jaudenes. Wesley Merritt, 

Major-Ge7ieral, U. S. A. 

Manila, August 14th, 1898. 

THE UNDERSIGNED, having been appointed a commis- 
sion to determine the details of capitulation of the city and de- 
fenses of Manila and its suburbs, and the Spanish forces sta- 
tioned therein, in accordance with the agreement entered into 
the previous day by Major-General Wesley Merritt, U. S. 
Army, American Commander-in-Chief in the Philippines, and 
His Excellency Don Fermin Jaudenes, Acting General-in-Chief 
of the Spanish Army in the Philippines, HAVE AGREED 
UPON THE FOLLOWING: 

I. The Spanish troops, European and native, capitulate 
with the city and defenses, with all the honors of war, deposit- 
ing their arms in the places designated by the authorities of the 
United States, and remain in the quarters designated and under 
the orders of their officers and subject to the control of the 
aforesaid United States authorities, until the conclusion of a 



APPENDIX H 323 

treaty of peace between the two belligerent nations. All per- 
sons included in the capitulation remain at liberty and officers 
remaining in their respective homes, which shall be respected 
as long as they observe the regulations prescribed for their 
government and the laws in force. 

2. Officers shall retain their side arms, horses, and private 
property. 

3. All public horses and public property of all kinds shall 
be turned over to staff officers designated by the United 
States. 

4. Complete returns in duplicate of men by organizations, 
and full lists of public property and stores, shall be rendered to 
the United States within ten days from this date. 

5. All questions relating to the repatriation of officers and 
men of the Spanish forces and of their families and of the ex- 
penses which said repatriation may occasion, shall be referred 
to the Government of the United States at Washington. 
Spanish families may leave Manila at any time convenient 
to them. 

6. Officers included in the capitulation shall be supplied by 
the United States, according to their rank, with rations and 
necessary aid, as though they were prisoners of war, until the 
conclusion of a treaty of peace between the United States and 
Spain. All the funds in the Spanish treasury and all other 
public funds shall be turned over to the authorities of the 
United States. 

7. This city, its inhabitants, its churches and religious wor- 
ship, its educational establishments, and its private property 
of all descriptions, are placed under the special safeguard of 
the faith and honor of the American army. 

F. V. Greene, Brig. Gen. of Volunteers, U. S. Army. 

B. P. Lamberton, Captain, U. S. Navy. 

Charles A. Whittier, Lieut. Col. and Inspector General. 

E. H. Crowder, Lieut. Col. and Judge Advocate. 

Nicolas de la Pena, Auditor General Excnw. 

Carlos Reyes, Coronel de Ingenieros. 

Jose Maria Qlaquen Feli'n, Coronel de Estado Mayor. 



324 APPENDIX H 



United States Naval Force on Asiatic Station 

Flagship Olynipia, 

Manila, P. I., August i8, 1898. 

Sir: 

1. I have the honor to report that at 9 a. m. on August 
13th, the Squadron left its anchorage at Cavite and took posi- 
tion off the city of Manila. 

2. The flagship Olympia, Raleigh and Petrel then proceeded 
to shell the magazine, fort, and entrenchments at Malate, an 
army column attacking from the southward at the same time, 
accompanied by the gunboat Callao and tug Barcelo, well in- 
shore. Commenced firing at 9.35 and ceased firing at 10.32, 
the fort being silenced and the enemy retreating into the city 
closely followed by the army advancing along the beach, with 
the Callao and Barcelo on its flank. 

3. The other vessels of the squadron took the positions as- 
signed them opposite the principal batteries along the water 
front, as did also the Olympia, Raleigh and Petrel after the re- 
duction of the fort at Malate. 

4. At II A. M. hoisted the international signal. Do you sur- 
render? and at 11.20 a white flag was seen on the city wall. 
After preliminary conference. General Merritt landed with 600 
troops and arranged the terms of surrender. 

5. The Spanish flag was hauled down by Lieutenant Brumby 
of my staffs, who hoisted the United States flag at 5.43 P. m. 
A company of troops with a regimental band happening to be 
marching past, saluted the colors as they went up and played 
the national air. The vessels of the Squadron fired a national 
salute. 

6. I have the honor and pleasure to forward the Spanish 
flag to the Secretary of the Navy; also the colors of the armed 
transport Cebu, their only remaining naval vessel. 

7. The forts and batteries on the bay front of the city con- 
tained the following guns: 

Four B. L. R. of 24 cm. (9.4 inches), distributed as follows: 
two in battery north of Ermita, one outside moat near south- 



APPENDIX H 325 

west angle of city wall, and one outside wall near northwest 
angle, opposite Fort Santiago. 

Four B. L. R. guns of 14 cm. (5.5 inches) in battery near 
middle of west front outside walls. 

Two B. L. R. bronze guns of 15 cm. (5.9 inches) on siege 
carriages near the preceding. 

Two B. L. R. guns of 12 cm. (4.7 inches) on siege carriages 
in battery at the end of south mole of Pasig River. 

Nine muzzle-loading rifled mortars of 2i cm. (8.3 inches), 
four in battery outside southwest angle of city walls, and five 
on the city wall between the two gates of the west front. 

All these guns were mounted behind earthworks, with well- 
supplied and protected magazines at hand. There are also the 
following serviceable guns: 

Eighteen M. L. R. guns of 16 cm. (6.3 inches) distributed as 
follows: Nine on southwest angle of city wall, five in Fort San- 
tiago (northwest angle of city wall), two in front of flagstaff, 
and two in battery on outer end of south mole of Pasig River. 

Eight B. L. Krupp field pieces distributed along city wall. 
Also numerous saluting guns and obsolete guns and mortars. 

8. Under a separate cover, I forward for the information of 
the Department plan showing sea front of walled city and loca- 
tion of principal batteries as determined by special reconnais- 
sance on August 15th, 1898. 

I have the honor to be, 

Very respectfully, 

George Dewey, 
Rear- Admiral, U. S. Navy, 
Commanding U. S. Naval Force on Asiatic Station. 
The Secretary of the Navy, 
Washington, D. C. 



INDEX 



INDEX 



Agawam, The, 117,118, 119, 120, 

128. 
Aguinaldo, Emilio, 245, 246, 247, 

262, 270, 284, 311, 313. 
Alabama, The, 45, 137, 220. 
Albatross,T\\t, 89, 91. 
Alden, Captain James, 60, 116, 

117. 
Alexandria, 29. 
Alfonso II, The, 256. 
Algado, Captain, 295, 306. 
"American Notes," Dickens's, 21. 
Anderson, Brigadier-General, 250, 

268. 
Andre, M. Edouard, 272, 273, 275, 

279. 
Annapolis, 10, 12, 13, 14, 16, 17, 

36, 40, 50, 75, 108, 141, 142, 143, 

158. 
Appomattox, 137. 
Arabi Pasha, the rebellion, 199. 
Argos, The, 295. 
Arthur, President, 151. 
Australia, The, 250. 

Bacoor, 222. 

Badger, Rear-Admiral, 145. 

Bailey, Theodorus, 54, 61, 69. 

Bakor Bay, 297, 300. 

Baltimore, The, 171, 188, 192, 193, 
194, 196, 205, 212, 220, 223, 226, 
238, 277, 294, 298, 300, 304. 

Bancroft, George, 10, 12, 152, 153. 

Barcelo, The, 239, 278. 

Barker, Rear-Admiral Albert S., 
95, 287. 

Barron, Commodore, 20. 

Batcheller, Ensign, loi, 102. 



Beaufort, 132, 134, 
Benavente, Lieutenant, 295. 
Benjamin, Judah P., 79. 
Black, Major-General W., 182, 

193- 
Blaine, James G., 151. 
Blake, Francis, 144. 
Blake, Captain George S., 20. 
Blake, Mrs., 20. 

"Blood is thicker than water," 31. 
Boca Chica, 197, 202, 263. 
Boca Grande, 197, 198, 199, 202, 

208, 209, 231, 297. 
Bolinao, Cape, 205, 232, 297. 
Boston, 150. 
Boston, The, 174, 180, 193, 194, 

205, 206, 210, 212, 221, 226, 237, 

243, 271, 277, 294, 297, 298, 299, 

303- 
Boston Navy Yard, 144. 
Boutwell, Commander, 118. 
Bowers, Lloyd E., 8. 
Bridgeman, Commander, 159. 
Brook, Mr., 146, 147. 
Brooklyn Navy Yard, the, 141. 
Brooklyn, The, 66, 113, 115, 116, 

117, 166. 
Brumby, Lieutenant T. F., 174, 

214, 24s, 246, 267, 279. 
Buchanan, President, 41. 
Buchanan, Franklin, 11, 12. 
Buck, minister to Japan, 190, 191. 
"Bull Pup," 18. 
Burton, 13. 
Butler, General Benjamin F., 77, 

78, 80, 82, 117, 118, 123, 128, 

132, 133- 



Caballo, 197, 198, 209, 210, 232. 



329 



330 



INDEX 



Cadarso, Captain L., 217, 295, 

306. 
Caldwell, Lieutenant, 58, 59, 61, 

127. 
Caldwell, Ensign H. H., 174, 195, 

246, 300. 
Calkins, Lieutenant, 215, 216, 300. 
Callao, The, 238, 239, 243, 268, 

277, 278. 
Camara, Admiral, 257, 258, 259, 

260, 261, 265. 
Canacao Bay, 200, 203, 297, 302. 
Canandaigua, The, 139. 
Carlos V, The, 256, 259. 
Casiilla, The, 213, 216, 217, 223, 

29S> 299, 301, 303. 
Cavite, 187, 200, 201, 202, 207, 

212, 214, 215, 218, 226, 232, 234, 

23s, 243, 244, 246, 247, 248, 268, 

276, 297, 299, 300, 308, 309, 312. 
Cavite Arsenal, 198. 
Cayuga, The, 54, 71. 
Cervera, Admiral, 251, 259. 
Chahnette, The, 72. 
Champlain, Lake, 23. 
Charleston, The, 170. 
Charleston, 113, 115, 122. 
Charleston, The, 250, 261, 277. 
Cherbourg, 140. 
Chichester, Sir Edward, 31, 249, 

266, 277, 280. 
Cleveland, President, 24. 
Coghlan, Captain J. B., 264, 265, 

294. 
Colorado, The, 54, 123, 124, 125, 

129, 130, 131, 134, 13s, 137, 138, 

139, 140, 141, 154, 157. 
Comstalk, Daniel, 8. 
Concha, Commander de la, 295. 
Concord, The, 171, 176, 178, 180, 

194, 201, 205, 206, 210, 212, 221, 

223, 226, 237, 243, 264, 276, 277, 

294, 297, 298, 303. 
Constantinople, 26. 
Constitution, The, 16, 142, 220. 
Conkling, Roscoe, 151. 



Converse and Bassett, 8. 

Coreo, The, 222. 

Cormoran, The, 254, 255, 263, 266, 

267. 
Corregidor, 186, 197, 198, 200, 

202, 205, 207, 209, 210, 225, 232, 

264, 300, 303. 
Cromer, Lord, 260. 
Crosby, Lieutenant, 58, 59, 127. 
Crowninshield, Rear-Admiral 

A. S., 167, 169, 173. 

Dahlgren, Rear- Admiral, 113, 115, 
116. 

DarHng, Charles H., 184. 

Darmstadt, The, 256, 258. 

Davila, Don Basilic Augustin, 
225, 247, 248, 273, 274, 275. 

Decatur, Commodore, 16, 20. 

Denby, Minister, 285. 

Deutschland, The, 182, 183, 184. 

Dewey, The, 156. 

Dewey, Admiral George, ancestry, 
3~5i boyhood of, 5-9; appointed 
to Annapolis, 1 3 ; life at Annapo- 
lis, 14-22; fight with classmate, 
19; assigned to the Wabash, 23; 
cruise on the Wabash, 26-37; 
meeting with the Princess Mary 
de Ligouri, 38; with the Pow- 
hatan and Pawnee, 33-36; com- 
missioned lieutenant, 36; re- 
ports for duty on board the 
Mississippi, 47; executive of- 
ficer on the Mississippi, 50; at 
New Orleans, 52-59; baptism 
of fire at New Orleans, 61; 
Mississippi rammed by the 
Manassas, 64; passing the forts 
of New Orleans, 66-68; runs 
down the Manassas, 69-71; the 
Mississippi ordered to quar- 
antine, 74; interview with Gen- 
eral Butler, 78-79; sent on 
board the British ship Rinaldo, 
83; on board the Mississippi 



INDEX 



331 



og Profit's Island, 86-87; run- 
ning the batteries at Port Hud- 
son, 91-94; the Mississippi 
aground off Port Hudson, 93- 
96; saving the crew, 94-97; 
mentioned in report of Captain 
Smith, 105; appointed prize 
commissioner at New Orleans, 
106; executive officer of the 
sloop Motiongahcla, 107; ac- 
companies Farragut in small 
boat off Port Hudson batteries, 
no; shell explodes on Monon- 
gahela, 111-112; transferred to 
the Brooklyn, 113; counter- 
mands Captain Emmons's order 
to pilot, 114; shore leave spent 
in Vermont, 116; reports for 
duty on board the Agawam, 
117; battle of Four Mile Creek, 
118; sent for by Rear- Admiral 
Porter to be executive officer 
of the Minnesota, 11 9-1 20; ap- 
pointed at request of Porter ex- 
ecutive officer of the Colorado, 
120; tips insubordinate seamen 
out of hammocks, 125; arrest 
of Webster by, 126-127; at 
Fort Fisher, 131-132; watch- 
ing assault and capture of Fort 
Fisher, 136; promoted to rank 
of heutenant-commander, 137; 
executive officer of the Canan- 
daigua, 138; in command of the 
Colorado, 139; visit of Farragut 
at Cherbourg, 140; shore duty 
at Annapolis, 141; marriage of 
Susan Boardman Goodwin, 
141-142; in command of the 
Narraganseit, 144; in command 
of the Supply, 144; death of 
wife of, 145; in the Gulf of Cali- 
fornia with the Narraganseit, 
145-149; trouble with Mexi- 
cans at La Paz, 146-148; na- 
-val secretary of the light-house 



board, 150; meeting with 
George Bancroft, 151-153; 
given command of the Juniata, 
153; given sick leave, 156; cap- 
tain, 156; visits Stockholm, 
159; visit of King George of 
Greece, 159; chief of the bureau 
of equipment, 164; president of 
the board of inspection and sur- 
vey, 165-166; commodore, 166; 
calls on Senator Proctor at sug- 
gestion of Theodore Roosevelt 
regarding command of Asiatic 
Squadron, 167-169; shipping 
ammunition on the Concord, 
171; appointed in command of 
the Asiatic Squadron, 170; takes 
over command of the squadron, 
1 74 ; calls on the Emperor of Ja- 
pan, 176-178; news of the de- 
struction of the Maine, 178; at 
dinner given to Prince Henry of 
Prussia at Hong Kong, 182- 
185; visit of Prince Henry to, 
185; secret arrangements made 
by for supply of coal and pro- 
visions, 189; purchase of the 
steamer Zafiro, 191; ordered to 
destroy Spanish fleet, 195; sails 
for Manila Bay, 196; conference 
with captains on board the flag- 
ship off Manila Bay, 206; enter- 
ing Manila Bay, 208-212; sights 
the Spanish fleet, 212-213; "You 
may fire when you are ready, 
Gridley," 214; battle of Manila 
Bay, 214-225; signals fleet to 
retire for breakfast, 219; stands 
in to complete destruction of 
Spanish fleet, 221; sends the 
McCulloch to Hong Kong, 227; 
given rank of acting rear-ad- 
miral by the President, 228; 
fires on German launch, 244; 
meeting with Aguinaldo and 
dealings with insurgents, 245- 



332 



INDEX 



248; relations with Vice-Admi- 
ral von Diedrichs, 256-267; 
preparations for Camara's fleet, 
261; capture of Manila, 277-280; 
ordered to suspend hostilities 
and blockade — peace declared, 
281; letter to Senator Proctor, 
285; appointed admiral of the 
navy for life, 286; sails for home 
via the Mediterranean, 287-290; 
arrival in New York, 290; offi- 
cial report of battle of Manila 
Bay to secretary of the navy, 
300; letter to Admiral Montojo, 
309-310; letter to Secretary 
Long re Aguinaldo, 311-312; 
official report of the capture of 
Manila, 324-325. 

Dewey, George Goodwin, 145. 

Dewey, Dr. Julius Temans, 4. 

Dewey, Mary, 5. 

Dewey, Mrs. Mildred McLean 
Hazen, 291, 292. 

Dewey, Simeon, 4. 

Dewey, William, 4. 

Dick, Dr. James Nicholas, 155. 

Diedrichs, Vice-Admiral von, 252, 
257, 262, 264, 265, 266, 267. 

Dixie, The, 261. 

Dolphin, The, 156. 

Don Antonio de Ulloa, The, 213, 
218, 295, 299, 303. 

Don Juan de Austria, The, 213, 
216, 217, 222, 295, 299, 301, 
302, 303- 

Donelsonville, in. 

Dorchester, 3. 

Douai, 3. 

Duee, 3. 

Duee, Josiah, 4. 

Duee, Thomas, 3. 

Dyer, Captain N. M., 294. 

El Cano, The, 295. 

El Fraile, 197, 198, 209, 210. 

EUicott, Lieutenant John M., 202. 



Emmons, Captain, 113, 114, 115, 

116. 
Esmeralda, The, 194. 
Evans, Gunner J. C, 299. 

Fame, The, 196. 

Farragut, Admiral, 11, 41, 44, 49, 
50, 51, 52, 54, 55, 56,61,63,66, 
67, 69, 72, 73, 74, 77, 80, 84, 85, 
86, 87, 88, 104, 108, 109, no, 
III, 116, 117, 123, 137, 140, 141, 
158, 208, 239. 

Fayal, 154. 

Fear River, Cape, 122. 

Ferguson, J. H., 315. 

Fisher, Fort, 120, 121, 122, 123, 
127, 129, 132, 134, 135, 136, 

137- 
Four Mile Creek, 118. 
Fox, Gustavus V., 40, 42, 49, 73, 

104, 105, 120. 
Franklin, The, 140. 
Franklin, Rear- Admiral, 157, 

160. 

Garces, Senor, 301. 

Garfield, President, 151. 

Gefion, The, 182. 

Genesee, The, 89. 

Genoa, 29. 

George, King of Greece, 159. 

Goldsborough, Rear- Admiral, 19, 

20, 138. 
Goodwin, Susan Boardman, 141. 
Goodwin, ex-Governor of New 

Hampshire, 141. 
Grant, General U. S., 53, 117, 122, 

133, 137- 

Greene, Brigadier-General Fran- 
cis v., 268, 269, 270, 271, 272. 

Greer, Admiral James A., 160. 

Gridley, Captain, 214, 245, 294. 

Guadalupe, 249. 

Guerra, Commander de, 295. 

Giierriere, The, 16, 220. 



ill'L 



INDEX 



333 



Hains, Major Peter C, 150, 151. 
Hampton Roads, 11, 24. 
Harriet Lane, The, 104. 
Harris, Charles B., 175, 176. 
Harris, Mrs., 175, 176. 
Harstene, Henry J., 34. 
Hartford, The, 42, 57, 61, 66, 67, 

69, 87, 88, 89, 91, 108, 117. 
Havre, 144. 
Hay, John, 260, 292. 
Hayes, President, 151. 
Hearst, W. R., 260. 
Helena, The, 166. 
Henry, Prince of Prussia, 181, 182, 

183, 184, 185. 
Henry, Professor, 150. 
Herald, The New York, 300. 
Hercules, The, 239, 299. 
Hewett, Commander, 83, 84. 
Hong Kong, 171, 178, 180, 181, 

186, 188, 189, 193, 194, 19s, 

207, 224, 227, 237, 239, 240, 

241, 245, 246, 274. 
Hong Kong Club, the, 192. 
Howell, Rear-Admiral, 36, 37, 167, 

168. 
Hubbard, Gordon S., 8. 
Hudson, Port, 68, 85, 86, 104, 106, 

107, 108, no, 112, 20S. 
Huger, Thomas B., 75. 
Hughes, Lieutenant E. M., 222. 
Human, Commander I. L., 295. 

Immortalite, The, 249, 254, 266, 

277. 
Indiana, The, 165. 
Iowa, The, 165, 261. 
Iphigenia, The, 277. 
Irene, The, 254, 255, 263, 264. 
Iroquois, The, 57, 74. 
Irving House, the, 13. 
Irwin, Ensign N. E., 220. 
Isla de Cuba, The, 213, 217, 218, 

222, 232, 29s, 299, 301, 303, 306. 
Isla de Liizon, The, 213, 217, 222, 

232, 29s, 299, 301, 303, 306. 



Isla de Panay, The, 198. 
Isla Grande, 264, 301. 
Isabel, The, 236, 268. 
Ito, Captain, 160. 
Itsukushima, The, 254. 

Jackson, Fort, 46, 54, 78, 79, 85, 

92, 127, 208. 
Jaudenes, General Firmin, 273, 

274, 275, 279, 318, 319, 322. 
James River, the, 117. 
Japan, Emperor of, 176, 177. 
Jenkins, Captain Thornton, no, 

III, 112. 
Johnson, Captain Philip, 80. 
Juniata, The, 153, 155. 

Kaiser, The, 258, 263. 

Kaiserin Augusta, The, 256, 262, 

263. 
Kane, Doctor, 34. 
Kearsarge, The, 137, 138, 159, 220. 
Kellogg, Lieutenant F. W., 220. 
Kiau Chau Bay, 175, 181, 185. 
Kindleberger, Assistant Surgeon 

C. P., 299. 
Kineo, The, 90, 91. 
Kowloon dock-yard, The, 194. 
Kowshing, The, 160. 

Lamberton, Commander B. P., 
193, 194, 20s, 214, 215, 226, 227, 
236, 238, 24s, 280, 299. 

Lanier, Charles, 144. 

La Paz, 146, 147. 

La Valette, Flag-Officer E. A. F., 
23, 26, 27. 

Lee, Rear-Admiral S. P., 118, 120. 

Leyte, The, 242. 

Lezo, The, 213, 222, 295, 299, 303. 

Ligouri, Mary de, 28. 

Lincoln, Abraham, 40, 46, 49, 112, 

133- 
Linnet, The, 254. 
Lockwood, Henry H., 11. 



334 



INDEX 



Long, John D., 167, 169, 173, 178, 

187, 188, 190, 195, 285, 311. 
Louisiana, The, 74, 78, 127, 128. 
Lowenstein, Prince, 262. 
Luneta battery, 212, 277, 279. 
Luzon, 205. 

MacArthur, Brigadier- General 
Arthur, 272. 

McCidloch, The, 188, 194, 210, 
212, 227, 237, 239, 242, 246, 257, 
264, 267, 277, 294, 297, 303. 

McGehee, The, 72. 

McKinistry, Captain, 90. 

McKinley, President, 169, 179, 
228, 252, 284, 285, 286, 287. 

McNair, Rear-Admiral, 167, 170, 
174. 

McRae, The, 75. 

Macedo7iian, The, 16. 

Mackinaw, The, 130. 

Madrid, 227. 

Maine, The, 165, 17S, 245. 

Malate, the fort, 277, 298. 

Malolos, 286. 

Malta, 155, 160. 

Manassas, The, 48, 63, 64, 65, 
66, 68, 69, 70, 75, 103. 

Manila, 145, 186, 194, 199, 200, 
201, 202, 204, 205, 207, 211, 219, 
223, 227, 228, 231, 232, 234, 236, 
237, 238, 239, 241, 242, 243, 245, 
247, 248, 249, 257, 268, 269, 272, 
281, 282, 283, 297, 298, 301, 302, 

307- 
Manila, Archbishop of, 230. 
Manila Bay, 12, 13, 50, 129, 172, 

180, 185, 186, 187, 188, 196, 197, 

200, 202, 204, 205, 206, 207, 261, 

297. 
Marcy, Executive Oflficer, 35, 36. 
Mare Island Navy Yard, 171. 
Marques del Dnero, The, 213, 217, 

222, 295, 299, 301, 306. 
Marshall, Charles, 144. 
Massachusetts, The, 165. 



Mejiid, Abdul, 27. 

Merrimac, The, 11, 23, 33, 41, 

IIS, 143- 
Merritt, Major-General, 269, 270, 

271, 275, 276, 279, 283, 284,317, 

319, 320, 322, 324. 
Metternich, 30. 
Mexico, war with, 38. 
Mindanao, The, 222, 299, 303. 
Minnesota, The, 120, 130, 131. 
Mirs Bay, 172, 194, 195, 199, 204, 

297- 

Mississippi, The, 39, 43, 47, 48, 
50, Si, 54, 57, 60, 61, 62, 63, 65, 
66,67,68,69, 70, 71, 74, 75, 77, 
78, 86, 87, 88, 89, 90, 91, 96, 102, 
104, 105, 117, 156, 208. 

Mississippi, C. S. S., 78. 

Mississippi Bay, 48. 

Mobile Bay, 11, 116. 

Mohican, The, 171. 

Monadnock, The, 257, 282. 

Monitor, The, 2,i, 41, 57, i43- 

Monocacy, The, 174, 179, 180, 

189, 191, 194. 
Monongahela, The, 87, 88, 90, 107, 

108, no. III, 112, 117. 
Monterey, The, 257, 259, 261, 272, 

277.^ 
Montojo, Admiral, 204, 206, 207, 

211, 217, 218, 221, 222, 227, 233, 

242, 261, 279. 
Morgan, Junius S., 144. 
Morin, Vice-Admiral, 199. 
Morris, Henry W., 80. 
Mosher, The, 66, 67. 

Nagasaki, harbor of, 174, 175, 

190, 254. 
Naniwa, The, 160. 

Nanshan, The, 188, 191, 194, 205, 

211, 303, 312. 
Napoleon III, 29, 30. 
Narragansett, The, 144, 145, 146, 

147, 148, 149. 
Nashville, The, 166. 



INDEX 



335 



New Inlet, 128. 

New Ironsides, The, 115, 129, 156. 

New Orleans, 53, 54, 56, 72, 73, 74, 

76, 83,86, 92,93, 106, 107, 121, 

123. 
Newark, The, 261. 
Newport, 145. 
Norwich Military Academy, 7. 

Olongapo, 201. 

Olympia, The, 3, 12, 158, 160, 
170, 174, 178, 179, 181, 185, 194, 
19s, 203, 212, 214, 215, 218, 219, 

220, 223, 225, 230, 231, 234, 237, 
238, 242, 27s, 277, 278, 288, 290, 
294, 298, 299, 300, 304, 324. 

Oneida, The, 57, 71. 
Oregon, The, 95, 165, 261. 
Oscar, King of Sweden, 159. 
Otis, Major-General E. S., 284, 
285. 

Partridge, Captain Alden, 7. 
Pasig River, The, 223, 224, 276, 

298. 
Pawnee, The, 2>3, 34, 36. 
Peacock, The, 16. 
Pei River, The, 31. 
Peking, The, 250. 
Pelayo, The, 256, 259. 
Pennock, Captain, 140. 
Pensacola, The, 53, 54, 57, 61, 62, 

63, 80, 156, 157, 158, 163. 
Perels, M., 265, 314. 
Perry, Commodore, 48, 174, 175, 

176, 177. 
Perseverance, H. M. S., 31. 
Petrel,The,i74, 178, 194, 210, 212, 

221, 222, 223, 226, 227, 235, 243, 
276, 277, 278, 294,. 298, 299,303. 

Philip, St., Fort, 46, 54, 85, 92, 

127, 208. 
Philippine Islands, The, 145, 170, 

175,179,195,232,237,239,251, 

281, 283, 286. 
Pinola, The, 58. 



"Pope's Run," 63. 

Port Arthur, 181. 

Port Royal, 113. 

Porter, David D., 42, 49, 55, 58, 

74, 119, 120, 121, 123, 125, 128, 

129,133,134,135,142,151,153. 
"Porter's Dancing Academy," 

142. 
Powhatan, The, 33. 
Prinzess Wilhelm, The, 263. 
Proctor, Senator, 168, 169, 228, 

285. 
Profit's Island, 86. 
Punta Restinga, 198, 232. 

Raleigh, The, 180, 194, 210, 212, 

223, 226, 238, 255, 264, 277, 278, 

294, 298, 300, 303, 324. 
Rapido, The, 239, 268, 299. 
Read, Captain Abner, 108, in, 

112. 
Read, Charles W., 75. 
Red River, The, 76. 
Redcliffe, Lord Stratford de, 26, 30. 
Reed, Captain, 36. 
Reina Crisiina, the, 213, 216, 217, 

223, 231, 295, 298, 299, 301, 303, 

306. 
Reine H or tense. The 29. 
Reiter, Lieutenant George C, 147, 

148. 
Rhind, Commander A. C, 118, 

119, 128. 
Richmond, 122. 
Richmond, The, 4S, 57, 60, 87, 88, 

89, 90, 102. 
Rinaldo, The, 82, 83. 
Rio, Captain Del, 309. 
Robion, Commander E., 295. 
Roosevelt, Theodore, 167, 168, 

169, 170, 179, 184, 229, 239. 

Sampson, Rear-Admiral, 139, 228, 

238, 251, 259, 261. 
Sangley Point, 200, 203, 213, 215, 

221, 223. 



336 



INDEX 



San Antonio, Fort, 270, 277, 278. 
San Francisco, 171, 187. 
San Nicolas Shoals, 209, 210. 
San Quintin, The, 301. 
Santiago, 204, 219, 231, 261, 

290. 
Schley, Rear- Admiral, W. S., 164. 
Schurman, president of Cornell, 

285. 
Scott, Ensign W. P., 300. 
Selfridge, T. O., 48, 50. 
Severn, Fort, 10. 
Shepard, Ensign E. M., 102. 
Sherman, 66. 
Sherman, General W.T., 123, 151, 

152, 153- 

Sidney, The City of, 250. 

Sidrach, Commander, 295. 

Sinope, 32, 38, 39. 

Smith, Commander Melancthon, 
50, 51, 54,61,68,69, 70, 78, 79, 
81, 82, 83, 87, 91, 93, 94, lOI, 
102, 103,. 104, 105, 108, no. 

Smith, Pay-Inspector D. A., 188. 

Solferino, 30. 

Sostoa, Captain, 226, 227, 303. 

Spaulding, George, 13. 

Stevens, Colonel John, 32. 

Stevens Institute, 32. 

Stickney, J. L., 195, 214, 300. 

Stonewall, Jackson, The, 71. 

Stribling, Flag-Officer, 44. 

Subig Bay, 200, 201, 202, 205, 206, 
207, 221, 232, 264. 

Suez, 199, 258, 259, 261. 

Sumter, Fort, 56, 118. 

Supply, The, 144. 

Tappan, Lieutenant, 239, 278. 
Tatnall, Flag-Officer Josiah, 31. 
Teciimseh, The, 117. 
Tennessee, The, 80, 81. 
Terry, Major-General A. H., 133, 

134, 137- 
Testa, Captain, 314. 
Texas, The, 165. 



Thatcher, Commodore H. K., 123, 

127, 131, 134, 137, 139- 
Thomas, Lieutenant-Commander 

N. W., 91. 
Thornton, Executive Officer, 42. 
Toey-Wan, The, 31. 
Togo, Captain, 160. 
Tracy, Secretary of the Navy, 

161, 163, 291. 
Trinidad, The, 263. 
Triunfo, 146. 
Tsushima Straits, 160. 

Ulloa, The, 221, 223. 
United States, The, 16. 
Upham, Ensign F. B., 174. 

Velasco, The, 213, 295, 303. 
Venavente, Lieutenant, 301. 
Vera Cruz, 34. 
Veruna, The, 57, 71. 
Vicksburg, 85, 86, 112. 
Virginia, The, 23. 
Virginius, The, 145. 

Wabash, The, 23, 24, 25, 26, 28, 

Zi, 120, 130, 141, 153, 154, 288. 

Walker-Rawson, E. H., 224, 234, 

273- 
Walker, Commander Asa, 171, 

206, 294. 
Wand, Mr., 63. 

Warley, A. F., 64, 65, 69, 70, 75. 
Warrior, The, 2,i- 
Washington, 227, 240, 257, 280, 

282, 283. 
Wasson, Martin V. B., 8. 
Watson, Rear-Admiral, 261. 
Watts, Mr., 260. 
Wehb, The, 76. 
Webster, 126. 
Wei-hai-wei, 181. 
Welles, Gideon, 40, 104. 
West Point, 10, 12. 
Westfield, The, 104. 
White, Chief-Justice, 88. 



INDEX 



337 



White, Naval Cadet, 278. 

Whittier, Colonel, 279. 

Wildes, Captain Frank, 193, 206, 

294, 299. 
Williams, Mr., 26, 28, 29. 
WiUiams, Mr. O. F., 186, 194, I95, 

198, 204, 223, 224, 297. 
Wilmington, 122. 
Wilmington, The, 166. 
Windsor County Court, 8. 
Winooski, 6. 
Wood, Commander E. P., 235, 

294, 299. 



Woodstock, 8. 
Worcester, Doctor, 285. 
Worden, Rear- Admiral John L., 

142, 143. 
Wyman, Captain R. H., 137. 

Yalu, The, 160. 
Yankee, The, 261. 
Yeddo, Gulf of, 177. 
Yoseniite, The, 261. 

Zo>o,The, 191, 194,211, 225,240, 
241, 303- 



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